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65 TdSSw E8S ( HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES . { °no U ™ 



THE IRISH QUESTION 



HEARINGS BEFORE THE COMMITTEE 
ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Sixty-fifth Congress - Third Session 

ON 

H. J. RES. 357 

REQUESTING THE COMMISSIONERS PLENIPO- 
TENTIARY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 
TO THE INTERNATIONAL PEACE CONFERENCE 
TO PRESENT TO THE SAID CONFERENCE 
THE RIGHT OF IRELAND TO FREEDOM, 
INDEPENDENCE, AND SELF- 
DETERMINATION 



DECEMBER 12, 1918 




February 26, 1919.— Ordered to be printed 



WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 

1919 



COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS. 



HENRY D. FLOOD, 
.T. CHARLES LINTHICUM, Maryland. 
WILLIAM S. GOODWIN, Arkansas. 
CHARLES M. STEDMAN, North Carolina. 
PAT HARRISON, Mississippi. 
CHARLES B. SMITH, New York. 
DORSEY W. SHACKLEFORD, Missouri. 
ADOLPH J. SABATH, Illinois. 
J. WILLARD RAGSDALE, South Carolina. 
GEORGE HUDDLESTON, Alabama. 
TOM CONN ALLY, Texas. 



Chairman, Virginia. 

THOMAS F. SMITH, New York. 
HENRY A. COOPER, Wisconsin. 
STEPHEN G. PORTER, Pennsylvania. 
JOHN JACOB ROGERS, Massachusetts. 
HENRY W. TEMPLE, Pennsylvania. 
GEORGE EDMUND FOSS, -Illinois. 
CLARENCE B. MILLER, Minnesota. 
LUTHER W. MOTT, New York. 
AMBROSIO KENNEDY, Rhode Island. 



Lesxexi D. Ahnuld. Clerk. 



13 e> 

MAR 



Of d. 

28 i9jg 



^%> c\ THE IRISH QUESTION. 
• N «\> 

Committee on Foreign Affairs, 

House of Representatives, * 
Thursday, December 12, 1918. 

The committee met at 10 o'clock a. m., Hon. Henry D. Flood (chair- 
man) presiding. 

The Chairman. The committee has met this morning for the pur- 
pose of considering House joint resolution 357, introduced by Mr. 
Gallagher, of Illinois, and other resolutions which have been referred 
to the Committee on Foreign Affairs relative to the Irish question. 

I understand there are quite a number of ladies and gentlemen here 
from different points in the country who want to be heard on the reso- 
lutions, and I will be glad if some gentleman who represents some of 
these committees or delegations would indicate whether he knows how 
many there are to be heard, so we can arrange to apportion the time. 
The committee decided to give four hours to hearing various persons 
on these resolutions. We would like to apportion the time in a 
manner agreeable to those who have come to be heard. 

In addition to the visiting delegates there are a number of Members 
of Congress, who have introduced resolutions of a similar import, 
who would probably like to be heard on their particular resolutions. 

STATEMENT OF HON. THOMAS GALLAGHER, A REPRESENTATIVE 
IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF ILLINOIS. 

Mr. Gallagher. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, 
House joint resolution 357 is simply an amended resolution which 
was introduced by me in the House about two years ago, requesting 
the commissioners at the Peace Conference to take up the question of 
Irish freedom and self-determination. 

As a result of the introduction of that resolution quite an agitation 
has gone over the country urging legislative action upon the resolu- 
tion. A great convention was held in New York City last spring, 
with delegates present from every section of the United States. They 
sent a committee here in August — the Mother's Mission, representing 
the tens of thousands of Irish-American mothers who had sons in 
the American Army— to present to Congress a petition signed by some 
600,000 American citizens asking for action on that resolution. 

I presented the petition to Congress, and it was referred to your 
committee. Since that time I have introduced House joint resolution 
357, which is the original resolution amended to meet present condi- 
tions, and I want to thank the committee for giving us a hearing on it. 

We have large delegations from different sections of the United 
States here this morning. They have come long distances, and have 
been unable to get together and formulate 'the program. That must 



4 THE IRISH QUESTTON. 

develop at this hearing. We have 20 here from Chicago alone, and 
there are other men and women from every section of the country 
Of course, we are anxious to give all of these delegations a chance to 
be heard upon the resolutions. 

Likewise there are a number of other resolutions which have been 
introduced m Congress bearing upon the subject of a free Ireland, 
and the introducers of those resolutions may want to put their views 
before the committee also. So, in order to develop some kind of a 
program by which we can have concerted action and use as little time 
as may be necessary to place the matter properly before the com- 
mittee, I am willing to consider any suggestions that may be made as 
to the formulation of a program. 

I want to say this: That in accordance with the organized effort 
of the people who are behind my resolution — and there is a large 
organized effort all over the country, in all the large cities, and 
throughout the whole country generally— former Congressman Gor- 
man, who is here as the head of the committee from Chicago, has 
conferred with the New York delegation and other delegations, and 
he may have some suggestions to 'make by which we can formulate a 
plan for presenting our views on £hjg subject. jl 

Mr. McLaughlin, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Lundeen. and a nuliber of 
others who have presented resolutions, will doubtless desire to be 
heard. At the same time, I want to suggest to the chairman of the 
committee that several other Member's of Congress may want to have 




fc>_pi 



verbally. 



The Chairman. That permission will be granted.' In addition to 
the organization from Chicago, represented by ex-Congressman 
Gorman, there are also representatives from New York;^oston; 
Philadelphia; Cleveland; Pittsburgh; Provident, R. f.; Oswego, 
N. Y. ; Syracuse, N. Y. ; South Bend, Ind. ; Indianapolis, Infl. iMon- 
tana ; Kentucky ; St. Louis ; New Jersey ; St. Paul^ Minn. ; Connecti- 
cut ; Lowell, Mass. ; Wichita, Kans. ; St. Augustin^, Fla. ; "Vfestficld, 
Mass.; Pittsfield, Mass.; Springfield, Mass.; Baltimore; Washing- 
ton, D. C; Seattle; North Carolina; Missouri; Wisconsin: North 
Dakota; Springfield, Ohio; and New Rochelle, N. Y. That makes 
32 delegations. 

There are a number of Members of Congress who have introduced 
resolutions who might want time. 

Mr. Kennedy. Since the committee has limited the hearing to four 
hours, according to a motion agreed to by the committee, would it 
not be a good idea to find out how many intend to be heard, and then 
it would be possible to apportion the time? 

The Chairman. There is a suggestion that we proceed to-day, and 
that after we adjourn to-day that the various delegations get together 
and make an arrangement in regard to the apportioning of time to 
various speakers. Then if it is found that the time allotted is short, 
we will give you more time. Suppose we first hear Mr. Gorman and 
then some one else, and after we adjourn to-dav the various organi- 
zations can get together and apportion the time and select spokesmen. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 5 

Mr. Gorman. Mr. Chairman, I think all the delegates here are 
unanimous on what they are seeking. I do not think all the delega- 
tions will want to be heard. 

I understand there are a number of Members of Congress who have 
introduced resolutions similar to the one now before the committee. 

The Chairman. Nine or ten. 

Mr. Gorman. Suppose the committee devote such time as may be 
necessary this morning to hearing the Members of Congress on their 
respective resolutions, and then when you adjourn, after the Members 
of Congress have discussed their resolutions, we may be permitted to 
use this room for a meeting at which we will determine just how 
many speakers we care to have discuss the matter before the com- 
mittee. 

STATEMENT OF HON. AMBROSE KENNEDY, A REPRESENTATIVE 
IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF RHODE ISLAND. 

Mr. Kennedy. Mr. Chairman, being a member of the Committee 
on Foreign Affairs, I am perfectly willing to extend any time that 
might be given me to those who have come here to be heard on these 
resolutions. 

Briefly, however, I will state that the resolutions before the com- 
mittee are substantially similar; they differ only in phraseology. 
All these resolutions now before us propose that the doctrine of self- 
determination shall be applied to the settlement of the Irish ques- 
tion. But the resolution which I personally introduced differs from 
all the other resolutions in that it provides a way of ascertaining the 
will of the people of Ireland with respect to the form or system of 
government they may desire. It provides that the doctrine of self- 
determination shall be applied by giving that people the right to 
decide freely and fully for themselves by vote of a majority, expressed 
through a plebiscite, the political system under which they shall be 
governed. This is the element of difference between my resolution 
and the other resolutions which have been introduced on this subject. 

In reading the New York Times yesterday I noticed that a great 
mass meeting was held on Tuesday evening in New York composed 
of 25,000 people or more at which the following resolution was passed 
and transmitted to the President of the United States on his journey 
across the seas: 

Therefore, we respectfully but earnestly urge that our President declare at 
the peace congress that the people of Ireland should, as a matter of right and 
justice, be governed only in accordance with their consent and that the will of 
the majority, ascertained by a plebiscite of the adult population, be accepted 
as the sovereign will of the people instead of the present foreign rule by force. 

The resolution which I introduced several days ago on the question 
of self-determination for Ireland is somewhat similar in character 
to one which I offered during the last session of Congress, and I 
desire to call the attention of this committee and this audience here 
assembled to the fact that, just like the resolution so recently adopted 
at the great mass meeting in New York City, it provides that the will 
of the Irish people shall be expressed through a plebiscite. It is 
altogether obvious that a plebiscite of the entire adult population of 
Ireland would furnish the most complete and authorized expression 
of the national will. 



6 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

The world has been led to understand that the principle of self- 
determination is to be applied at the peace conference in accordance 
with the views so often enunciated by the President of the United 
States, and, this being the case, I believe it should be done without 
reserve or limitation. A fundamental principle knows no distinction 
of nations. Therefore, Ireland, as well as other small nations, should 
be included in the application of the principle. The proposition is 
one of extending justice to all, now that the peace of the world is to 
be finally settled upon the tested foundations of political liberty. 

Mi\ Chairman, not desiring to further encroach upon the time of 
those who are here to be heard, I shall reserve any further remarks 
until the committee assembles to consider these resolutions. 

The Chairman. Mr. Gorman, I think you had better proceed. 

Mr. Gorman. The Chicago delegation, coming down on the train 
last night, arranged that I was to speak myself and designate some 
members of the committee — Judge Scanlan, Judge Barrett, Rev. 
F. X. McCabe, president of De Paul University — to present their 
views to the committee on the subject. 

The Chairman. Whom do you desire to be heard first? 

Mr. Gorman. I will call on Judge Scanlan to speak. 

STATEMENT OF HON. KICKHAM SCANLAN, JUDGE OF THE CIR- 
CUIT COUItT OF COOK COUNTY, CHICAGO, ILL. 

Judge Scanlan. About 18 months ago this committee of ours 
appeared before your body and asked you at that time if you would 
favor a resolution which is in accord with the one we are now speak- 
ing about. You gave us a two days' hearing at that time. You 
remember we bothered you quite a little at the time we were here 
before. You probably thought we were rather troublesome in those 
war days. But you gave us the word at that time that a resolution 
like the one we wished adopted was not a prudent one, that it must 
bide its time. And we went away, Mr. Chairman. 

We went back to Chicago and we kept the faith. From that day 
until two weeks ago the committee of one hundred never did a 
solitary thing in the way of urging Congress or forcing its resolu- 
tion on the Government of the United States. 

They stepped into the ranks, like good American citizens, and 
they gave their all for this country, because when all is said and 
done a man of Irish ancestry could not do anything else for America. 
He might grieve about the condition of Ireland and he might have 
the old-time sentiment about marching in the ranks and saving 
England, but he was an American first, last, and all the time. 

The Irish helped to make America in 1776. The British Parlia- 
ment said that but for the aid of the people of Ireland the freedom 
of America would not have been won. And in every war from that 
day to this they have stood by America, and they stood by America 
to a man in the last war. Do not let any paper, do not let any 
propaganda in the world, ever make any member of this committee 
think that there was any man of Irish blood in America who could 
dream for one moment of anything but the success of America. 
We kept the faith. 

Now, the nations have signed the armistice and we are here again. 
I am reminded of the saying of an old schoolmaster at Notre Dame. 



THE IKISH QUESTION. 7 

who taught me arithmetic and geometry, of the difficulty of under- 
taking to prove an axiom. That is what we are here to-day for. 
We are standing before a committee of Congress — men and women 
from all over the United States — and we are undertaking to demon- 
strate an axiom. 

Mr. Goodwin. A self-evident proposition? 

Judge Scanlan. A self-evident proposition. Can you give any 
set of men in the world a harder proposition than that? What did 
our President justify our going into the war for? We were a peace- 
loving people. We had been taught, generation after generation, 
not to interfere with European affairs, and yet the day came; when 
we had to, and our great President, who has gone over the seas to 
see the right thing done, says this was a war for the small nations, 
that this was a war for justice, that this was a war to settle ques- 
tions that had been disturbing the peace of the world century after 
century. What did our great President say six or seven weeks ago? 
He said that at the peace table eternal justice may demand that 
our allies as well as foes shall concede things in order that the rights 
of the nations of the world may be properly determined. You are 
going to free the Poles; thank God for that. Irish-Americans rejoice 
at that. You are going to free the Bohemians; thank God for that. 
You are going to free all these other nations; thank God for it. 
Then, in the name of God, how can they have a voice for the pur- 
pose of determining what the rights are in settling these things and 
leave the nation that has been longest in bondage still in slavery? 

Ireland was a nation when the other great nations of Europe 
were not civilized. Ireland never fought an aggressive war against 
any nation in the world. Study her history, gentlemen. Never 
once did she assail another nation, and it is recorded in the*ancient 
books that she was, centuries ago, perhaps the strongest nation in 
Europe. Do you remember how she drove the Romans back to the 
Alps in defense of Scotland and England, and after she drove them 
back to the AJps she returned to Ireland. 

Ireland never persecuted any creed in the world. Do not let that 
poison enter into your souls. Ireland never persecuted any creed 
in the world. That is the history of Ireland, and whenever men 
were persecuted in Europe in the old days there was one land where 
they could go and worship God as they saw fit, and that was Ireland. 
Ireland was the only nation in Europe that never persecuted the 
Jew. Now they tell us to-day, in order to muddy the waters, that 
Ireland can not be relied upon in that regard as a free nation. 

Mr. Goodwin. In speaking of self-government, what friction, if 
any, would follow between Ulster and southern Ireland ? 

Judge Scanlan. None at all. Let me tell you something. You 
have heard of the rebellion of 1798 in Ireland. All the great leaders 
in that rebellion were Protestants. The English hanged them by the 
dozen. Eobert Emmet, Lord Edward Fitzgerald, and others that 
were Protestants sacrificed their lives. 

Mr. Kennedy. Robert Emmet was a Protestant? 

Judge Scanlan. Yes, sir; and Fitzgerald was a Protestant and 
Wolfe Tone was a Protestant, and Bagenal Harvey was a Protestant. 
Their names are emblazoned in the hearts of Irishmen. Every time 
that the Irish had to choose a leader within the last century and a 



8 THE IEISH QUESTION. 

half, instead of selecting a Catholic to lead them they selected a 
Protestant, with two notable exceptions, and the Protestants of Ire- 
land have died by the hundreds and thousands for nationality's sake. 

Mr. Goodwin. What is the ratio of population between the two? 

Judge Scanlan. Three to one. But it does not make any difference. 
Do not allow that to disturb you for a moment. You hear a good 
deal about the Ulster question, and yet we have a majority in Par- 
liament from that Protestant district of Ireland who stand out for 
Irish nationality. 

Mr. Miller. By that you mean those in favor of home rule ? 

Judge Scanlan. You have got to be very careful how you use those 
terms. I may say, personally, that if the Irish ever agree by a ma- 
jority vote that they are willing to have British home rule, in spite 
of the fact that for many generations back our family have been in 
America, that we have died on the scaffold or in jail fighting for 
Irish nationality, when they agree to accept British home rule I am 
through wLth Ireland. When any nation surrenders its nationality 
it is gone, and that is what has kept the Irish through 750 years of 
persecution, and if you men knew about it as we know about it you 
would feel as we do.* Do you know that at one time in the history of 
Ireland her population was reduced to the vanishing point by the 
sword and by carnage and by slaughter? But the virtue of the 
women of Ireland has spared us through all the generations; they 
repopulated Ireland, and in the providence of God they are going to 
repopulate it again. 

You ask me why, as an Irish-American, I am here demanding self- 
determination for Ireland. That is the blood that is in me, and I do 
not want my girls, who have been in the canteen service all through 
this war, to stand out in the days to come and say that at the peace 
conference they said that all nations should be free but the Irish. 
They say that the Czecho-Slavs, the Jugo-Slavs, and all these other 
nationalities shall be given their freedom, and the race that has gone 
out from one end of the world to the other, and kept the banner of 
freedom flying wherever they have gone, that that race shall be 
condemned forever to slavery. 

We are approaching the end, and God Almighty has struck the 
hour, and the question is now, when we close this book, What will be 
the voice of America on this question? 

You sent your boys over there to do what ? They are coming back 
now through Chicago by the trainloads, and my girls are canteening 
them day after day, and they are coming home with tears in their 
eyes, and telling us that the injured men who are coming back say, 
"Thank God we were in this great war; thank God we were in the 
war that settled for all time the freedom of the races." And they are 
coming back happy. Why ? 

If our representatives go to that peace conference and declare that 
all these nations shall be free and condemn Ireland to slavery, you 
siif ply have made a question that will disturb the peace of the world 
forever. You have got to settle this right. 

We are living in God Almighty's time; this is not man's time. 
God Almighty has been waiting, century after century, for man to 
do this right, and now He has ordained that the American people 
shall settle this thing, the people who have nothing to gain except- 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 9 

ing right, and they are going to be the people who will settle this 
proposition in Europe, regardless of how the other nations may feel 
about it. Else we have no justification for our part in the war. This 
is the question you must speak out about. You are doing something 
now that your children and their children's children are going to read 
about. You are saying whether you speak for free Ireland or for an 
enslaved Ireland. And if you speak right it matters not what these 
other nations may think or say. America that saved them all, 
America which has nothing else to gain except the establishment of 
right, America will determine it, and if you arm our President, who 
has gone over there to tell them what right is, he will come out of that 
conference with all the nations of the world free. 

It is pretty hard for me to speak on this subject. I have the emo- 
tions of centuries in my heart, and all I can think of for the dead 
of my race, those who died on the scaffold, and those who died in jail. 
I could speak forever on this subject. 

I beg of you to remember these things and to cast your vote right. 
It will be something you will be proud of to your dying day. It is 
something that your children and your children's children will be 
proud of, that you voted and you helped to make all the enslaved 
nations of the world free. 

STATEMENT OF REV. F. X. McCABE, PRESIDENT, DE PAUL 
UNIVERSITY. 

Rev. Father McCabe. Mr. Chairman, about a year ago the com- 
mittee from Chicago appeared before you on the resolution presented 
by Mr. Gallagher at that time, and we are here again practically for 
the same purpose on the question of self-determination for Ireland. 

We believe that the resolution should be ordered out on the floor 
for consideration because it is merely asking for one country that 
seems to have been left out, the things that have been laid down as 
fundamental, for which our Nation entered the war — the right of all 
peoples to live under the form of government that they would choose. 

We are representing practically the unanimous thought, not only 
of naturalized Irish-born men and women in Chicago, descendants 
of Irish men and women in Chicago, but the various creeds and na- 
tionalities of Chicago, when we, as the representatives of the com- 
mittee of 100, appear to speak for the resolution demanding self- 
determination for Ireland. 

I think in this resolution the right to freedom, independence, and 
self-determination of Ireland covers entirely the situation, and I 
feel that we have every reason as American citizens, independent 
of our descent, to request that you and your committee, with as little 
delay as possible, grant our request that this resolution may be taken 
out from the committee and put before the Congress of the United 
States. 

The Irish people have contributed, notwithstanding reports \to the 
contrary, a large percentage of their man power to the cause of the 
freedom of the rest of the small nations of the world and have the 
right, I believe, to demand for themselves what they have fought for 
for the whole world. They have contributed in funds, by extraordi- 
nary self-denial — I am speaking of the Irish — they have contributed 



10 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

in funds by extraordinary self-denial, millions of dollars toward 
the cause of freedom. In our own country, in Canada, Australia, 
practically from all over the world, the Irish born, who have be- 
come citizens of other countries, have been as earnest and as ener- 
getic as any in contributing of everything that has made for success 
to our arms. 

The Navy, the Army, and all the various branches of service of 
our own Nation are filled with Irish born, naturalized citizens of 
America, and the descendants of Irish born. And everyone of them 
went into the fight on the pledge of the fundamental principles that 
had been enunciated, that this country was asked to throw itself, 
with all its ene/gy and with all its power into the fight that the small 
nations of the world might no longer be tyrannized over by any na- 
tion, and that as a consequence they might have the right to assem- 
ble and determine for themselves their own form of government and 
pursue life, liberty, and happiness under governments chosen by 
themselves. 

When we, as a people, after going before the world under the di- 
rection of our Chief Executive, sacrificing our treasure, sacrificing 
our lives, and causing anguish and anxieties and fears and sufferings 
to mothers and fathers, have pledged ourselves to grant this, our 
whole work of the last two years will be thrown to the winds, if 
self-determination for Ireland is not put on the statute books. 

We want at the present time to leave nothing after this peace 
conference that will disturb the harmony of the world, and the Irish 
people, who have fought for 700 years, suffered, bled, and died for 
the last 700 years in a pronounced and open protest against a tyranny 
that has been exercised over them, will not rest until they have ob- 
tained their freedom and their independence, and anything that this 
Nation can do, that the Congress of the United States, that the Chief 
Executive of the country, supported by the Congress of the United 
States and by the popular sentiment of our country, can do, ought 
to be done, and ought to be done now. and I feel that I speak, basing 
what I say on the fundamental principles of our Government, when 
I say that the people have an absolute right to have returned to 
them their sovereignty, and I feel that there can be no harmony and 
no peace in the world as long as these people are.slaves. 

Therefore, Mr. Qhairman, we ask you and your committee to 
consider this resolution and to consider it favorably, that it may go 
before Congress and become the voice of the Congress of the United 
States. 

Mr. Gorman. At.this point I desire to inform the members of the 
Committee on Foreign Affairs who the men and women of the 
Chicago delegation are and what they represent. Mr. Patrick J. 
Reynolds is president of the Ancient Order of Hibernians of the 
State of Illinois. Mrs. B. J. Mahoney and Miss Anna Murphy are 
representing the League of Small Nations, an organization composed 
exclusively of women. Judge George M. Barrett and Judge Kickham 
Scanlan are two of the most prominent citizens of Illinois and are 
judges of the circuit court of Cook County, which is a court of 
unlimited jurisdiction. Rev. Father McCabe is president of De Paul 
University, Father Cahill is pastor of one of the leading parishes in 
Chicago. Dr. Murphy is one of our distinguished surgeons. John 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 11 

F. Fitzpatrick, John Roche, M. F. Sullivan, and George W. Mc- 
Guire represent the labor interests, the latter two being members of 
the bar and Mr. Sullivan an assistant States attorney. Those, with 
myself, represent what is known in Chicago as the Committee of One 
Hundred. 

This committee was created a little more than a year and a half 
ago, and it represents many societies in Chicago, the membership of 
which is composed of men and women of Irish birth or descent. 
Since its organization this Committee of One Hundred, representing 
these various societies has been very active in promoting the move- 
ment for action on the part of Congress to bring about self-deter- 
mination for Ireland. 

A resolution similar in tone to the resolution now before this 
committee for consideration urging self-determination for Ireland 
has been adopted by various organizations in Chicago and through- 
out the country, and to give the committee some idea of the wide- 
spread interest and sentiment that is represented in this matter I 
might say that the week beginning December 8 and ending Decem- 
ber 15 has been set apart by the National Council of the Friends of 
Irish Freedom as self-determination week. Meetings have been held 
and will be held between now and next Sunday and will continue to 
be held in all sections of the country. 

On next Sunday evening one of the largest gatherings ever held in 
the city of Chicago will assemble at the First Regiment Armory, at 
which the Most Rev. Archbishop Mundelein, of Chicago, will be the 
presiding officer. 

We have the labor organizations associated with us, and they have 
demanded that Ireland be given the right of self-determination. At 
one of the recent meetings of the Committee of One Hundred there 
were a number of distinguished non-Catholic clergymen present, who 
declared themselves as being strongly in favor of the adoption of 
such a resolution. Among those present on that occasion I might 
mention the names of Rev. Dr. Philip Yarrow, one of the most' 
prominent non-Catholic clergymen in Chicago and leader of the 
Chicago Dry Federation, and the Rev. Dr. John P. Brushingham. 
This movement is not confined to any one section of the country. 
It is not confined to men and women of Irish birth or descent. We 
are asking for the extension to Ireland of a fundamental American 
principle. 

We who have been taking some part in this movement believe that 
the position of the United States among the other nations of the world 
is such that if an expression went forth from the Congress of the 
United States urging the peace conference to apply that fundamental 
American principle to Ireland, or rather declare to England that it 
should be applied to Ireland, that such representation by the highest 
legislative body in the world will not and can not be ignored. We 
appeal to this committee to recommend this resolution of Congress- 
man Gallagher be reported to the House with a favorable recom- 
mendation, so that the world may know that the American people, 
through the Congress of the United States, insist that this age-long 
controversy between Ireland and England will come to an end, and 
the rights of Ireland will be determined as the President of the United 
States said the rights of all small nations should be determined, on 



12 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

racial lines, to the end that the peace of the world may be made secure 
by reducing to a minimum the sources of controversy that have here- 
tofore existed. 

Mr. Miller. I have been wondering what the population of Ireland 
is at the present time. 

Mr. Gorman. It is four and one-half million. 

Mr. Miller. And, further, could you give us any idea as to the kind 
of Government Ireland might establish for herself if this principle 
should be applied ? 

Mr. Gorman. That would only be my personal view on the matter. 

Mr. Miller. I understand that. 

Mr. Gorman. My impression is that if Ireland be given the right 
of self-determination she will in all probability follow the shining 
example of our own Government and adopt a government similar to 
that of the United States. 

Mr. Miller. It would be a Government separate and apart from 
the British Empire ? 

Mr. Gorman. I have no doubt that such would be the desire of 
the Irish people. 

Mr. Miller. I had in mind that possibly some scheme was in view 
of a combination between the two for mutual protection, whereby 
the fleet of one might be utilized for the protection of both. 

Mr. Gorman. Such a scheme as that might be worked out. I have 
heard it said that the British fleet has been guarding our shores very 
vigorously, and it might be that it would with the same vigor guard 
the shores of Ireland until such time as Ireland, under its own gov- 
ernment, could develop a fleet of its own. There was a time in the 
history of Ireland when she did have a fleet. 

Mr. Miller. You would not recommend that both Ireland and 
Great Britain should both have a big fleet on the high seas, would 
you ? They might be fighting all the time. 

Mr. Gorman. I think if the principle of the freedom of the seas is 
adopted there would not be any need for that. 

Mr. Goodwin. In that event, could you imagine any nation having 
the temerity to attack Ireland ? 

Mr. Gorman. Under proper international guarantees Ireland 
would be immune from attack. 

The Chairman. Can you tell us what the population was 70 years 
ago? 

Judge Scanlan. It was over eight million 70 years ago. 

The Chairman. Is that about the time the corn laws of England 
went into effect? 

Judge Scanlan. Yes. 

Mr. Gorman. I may say, Mr. Chairman, that we have brought 
literature on the subject of the revenues of Ireland, its expenditures, 
and its population, and I would be glad to leave that with the mem- 
bers of the committee. It would enlighten the committee in regard 
to some questions which they would be likely to ask. 

The Chairman. The population now is one-half what it was in 
1830? 

Judge Scanlan. Yes. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 13 

STATEMENT OF HON. JOSEPH McLAUGHLIN, A REPRESENTATIVE 
IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA. 

Mr. McLaughlin. Mr. Chairman, I have introduced on this sub- 
ject House joint resolution No. 127, directing the President and the 
Secretary of State to make such representations to Great Britain as 
shall result in the establishing of a government for Ireland similar to 
that in Canada. The resolution says : 

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States 
of America in Congress assembled, That the President and the Secretary of 
State be, and are hereby, directed to make such representations to Great Britain 
as shall result in the establishment of a government in Ireland similar to the 
government that now exists in Can-ada, with full right to enact such legislation 
as will promote the prosperity of the country, adequately develop its resources, 
and safeguard the rights, the liberties, and the interests of its people. 

I have no desire to take up too much of the time of the committee 
this morning. But I think we should divide the time. There are 
few men, I think, who have much better right to speak for the Irish 
in Ireland than I have. I have had the distinction of living 21 years 
11 months and 2 days in that country, so that I know it personally 
fairly well. I know the objections the Irish there have to living un- 
der English laws. It is reasonable that a people who have fought for 
freedom in every part of the world should believe that they should 
have freedom, and if this war has been for the freedom of small na- 
tions and for a world democracy, how can they select out the one lone 
cour*try that has been the longest persecuted and the longest under a 
form of government which they have resented for over 700 years 
and not make it free ? 

Now, Mr. Chairman, I am the National President of the largest rep- 
resentative organization of the Irish-Americans oji this continent, 
with a membership of over 250,000. They are a unit in asking for 
self-determination for Ireland. Our national officers and our board 
of directors met here one week ago. No dissenting voice on that 
board was heard on this question, and I beseech this committee to 
report any one of the resolutions to the House — I care not whether it 
is the McLaughlin resolution or any other resolution. What we 
want is justice. We want the same rights for the Irish people in Ire- 
land as we want for any other people, and I am satisfied that this 
committee will grant that right. 

I would like to have about 15 minutes of the next meeting of the 
committee to speak on the resolution I introduced. There are two 
other gentlemen here whom I would like to refer to. There is no 
religious prejudice in us. I am from the north of Ireland, which you 
can readily understand by my accent. There is not such a condition 
in the north of Ireland along religious lines as has been claimed. It 
is only those who enjoy special privileges from the English Govern- 
ment who try to create this distinction. 

The best evidence in the world is the fact that the nine northern 
counties, which they call Ulster, are sending a majority of National 
members to the British Parliament. 

There is a gentleman here from Louisville, Ky., whom I want the 
committee to hear, who is a Presbyterian, and who has two brothers 
who are Presbyterian clergymen in the north of Ireland. They are 
neighbors of mine, and they were all very liberal in their views. 



14 THE IKISH QUESTION. 

I do beseech you, gentlemen of the committee, to report this reso- 
lution to the House. I know your vote will be a just vote, and I feel 
sure that it will be a unanimous vote, so that this important issue 
may come before the American Congress. 

STATEMENT OF MR. RICHARD F. DALTON, OF NEW YORK, N. Y. 

Mr. Dalton. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, I 
appear here representing the United Irish- American Societies of New 
York, which, in its membership, represents all of the Irish and Irish- 
American organizations in New York. 

I appear here as the chairman of the committee which arranged 
for the Madison Square Garden meeting a few nights ago, the great- 
est meeting that has been held in New York since Bryan spoke at that 
historical meeting of his. On behalf of those people who expressed 
their interest at Madison Square Garden and on the streets around 
it — because all those who desired it could not secure admission to 
Madison Square Garden — I ask to make a part of the record the 
speech of Cardinal O'Connell, of Boston, delivered at that meeting 
in New York. 

The Chairman. Without objection, that may be admitted to the 
record. 

ADDRESS BY HIS EMINENCE. CARDINAL o'CONNELL, AT MADISON SQUARE GARDEN, 
NEW YORK CITY, DEC. 10, 1918. 

In finally yielding to the repeated urgent invitations of your committee to 
be present here at this significant meeting to-night I have listened to the 
voice of duty alone. 

As the case was presented to me it became clear to my mind that to stay 
away would be tantamount to the evasion of a grave obligation to my faith, my 
eountry, and my race. 

When the voice of that sacred trinity of motives calls, no man with a 
Christian conscience can refuse to rise and follow it, no matter what the cost 
or the sacrific. 

I had to choose between convenience, conventionality, and duty. I have 
made my choice, and here I stand. 

' The Irish people through ail the painful vicissitudes of their history have 
been faithful, as no other people in all the world, to the Christian faith. The 
most Christian country in all the world to-day, according to the testimony even 
of her enemies, is Ireland. 

When her children, fleeing from an intolerable condition of servitude under 
a foreign domination hateful to the proud spirit of all freemen, came in pitiable 
exile to these shores of free America they brought with them the noblest vir- 
tues of Christian souls. Where even to-day would the Church in America be— 
for that matter in the whole English-speaking world, England included — but for 
the fidelity, the great-heartedness, the unquenchable devotion of the children 
of Erin? 

Is it possible that any of us bishops or priests of America could ever be guilty 
of forgetting that to the heroic generosity of the Irish we owe such glorious 
monuments to faith as the superbly beautiful cathedral of this wonderful city, 
dedicated to Ireland's patron saint and erected by the sacrifices of his faithful 
sons and daughters? What is true of this noblest Christian shrine in America's 
greatest city is equally true of thousands and thousands of humbler fanes in 
humbler communities all over the land. 

Can any of us among the Church's leaders ever remain silent and inactive 
when there is at stake the welfare of the people to whom we owe our very daily 
bread and the roof that shelters us? 

There is no legitimate limit, no limit within Christian law, to which I and 
every prelate and priest of America should not be glad and happy to go when 
the cry of the long-sufferng children of the Gael comes to us, and when as now, 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 15 

before the tribunal of the whole world, the sacred cause of justice to every 
nation and every people is to be given a public hearing. 

It is because the people of Ireland have solemnly kept their sacred word, 
given to their great Apostle, to be faithful to Peter's successor as they would be 
faithful to Christ, that they have felt the heel of a foreign despot mercilessly 
grinding them down into the very dust of humiliation. Yes, let us say it frankly 
and openly for it is the truth, it is the fidelity of Ireland to all she holds most 
sacred which has been the chief cause of her offending. 

Are we whose very lives are dedicated to the eternal principle for which Ire- 
land has become a martyr among the nations, so bitten by mere worldly inter- 
ests as to be mute in this day when all the world of national wrongs and of 
brutal might is summoned into court? God forbid! 

In God's name let us now speak out fearlessly for God's cause, for the cause 
of justice to all, weak and strong, small and great, or let us be forever silent. 

If we look back upon what has happened during the last four years we shall 
see that conditions hitherto accepted as permanent and absolutely unchangeable 
have been so completely and entirely transformed that almost nothing remains 
of them to remind us of what once stood as firm as Gibraltar. 

It is as if the elemenlal forces had suddenly asserted themselves and had 
completely overrun the earth. The kaleidoscope of the world has been shaken 
and the bits of eolored glass in the child's toy have rushed into new combina- 
tions which puzzle the eyes of our brain. One after another thrones have been 
overturned and empires have fallen. Disorder has broken loose upon the 
earth, and unless some power greater than the forces of anarchy prevails, all 
Europe — all the world — will be shaken to the foundations of civilization. 

The great war is over now, but he who fancies that because the great war 
is over universal peace will appear on schedule time has a great disillusion 
ahead of him. No ; unless now that the war is over, justice begins her right- 
ful reign over 'the whole earth, there may be a momentary lull, but enduring 
peace will not be attained. It was for justice that humanity fought, and 
humapity will still be ready to go on with even fiercer wars until justice holds 
full sway. 

Be not deceived by false prophets. Diplomacy which failed so utterly to 
preserve the peace of the world will not succeed alone in bringing it back. 

Underneath the smooth and cool phrases and barren formulas of a diplomacy 
which has forgotten its own purposes, we can even now hear the mysterious 
stirring of elemental forces striving urgently to burst through the cryptic 
formularies of a decadent system, striving to get into articulate speech what 
suffering humanity wants to say, striving with the impatience of agonizing 
multitudes to stop the babble of bribed officialdom that honest men may be 
heard, striving to articulate in all the dialects of the world the word, which, 
heeded, will help the staggering earth to recover itself, unheeded, will plunge 
the whole tottering world into universal anarchy. 

America is far away from the real theatre of mighty changes. But even 
America will not easily escape a movement so universal as now is visible on 
every horizon. What is that movement? It is the pent-up longing in the 
hearts of a dozen nations for the right to rule themselves. 

The doom of autocracy has already sounded. The silent millions of Russia, 
patient for centuries, have rushed madly into the vortex of revolution. Even 
in Germany, which seemed so content with itself, a new force is pushing out 
the older forms. 

Obviously, therefore, we are at the end of a period, and a new one is begin- 
ning. Is it strange that when Poland and Serbia and the Czechs and the 
Slovaks and the Serbs and the Ukrainians are clamoring for national rights 
and national recognition that Ireland, for full seven centuries dominated by a 
foreign rule acquired only by force and even to-day exercised by force, should 
now more than ever call upon the world, but most of all upon America, as the 
bountiful mother of true freedom, to help her regain the treasurer stolen from 
her, and reinstate her in full possession of her complete liberty? 

If in the blaze which the great war enkindled, various tribes and families of 
the human race beheld as with a new light their claim to separate considera- 
tion, is it any wonder that the people of Ireland, too, had even a clearer and a 
stronger vision of their age-long inheritance? 

Ireland's position as a nation is nothing new which the war has just succeeded 
in creating. Never, since the day her crown was stolen, has she ceased to claim 
it back. In every century for 700 years, by protest, by appeal, by parliament, 
by arms when other means seemed futile, but in any event, by one means or 



16 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

another as she found it in her power to use them, Ireland has never failed to 
keep alive her own sense of distinct nationhood and impress it as palpably as 
conditions would_ allow upon a listening world. As a profoundly Christian 
nation, she has clung to the law of God in all these demonstrations of her 
loyalty to herself. Rarely, very rarely indeed, has she permitted even cruelty 
to goad her into forgetting it. 

But ever and always every method she adopted, every leader who spoke her 
cause, every victory won, every defeat suffered, every weapon used, every 
strategy designed, ever, and ever, and ever, the same ultimate purpose is 
clearly visible, and that purpose is the vindication of Ireland's right to gov- 
ernment only by consent of the governed. 

That is the principle which ultimately won America's freedom ; and it is 
because America understands that principle, that Ireland to-day relies upon 
America to echo it throughout the world for Ireland's liberty. 

Is it the Bolsheviki only who now are to be acknowledged as free? Is it 
because, being Catholic, the Irish people repudiate Bolshevism that they are 
now to be repudiated and their just claim forgotten and neglected? 

Let them beware in time who encourage by their actions and words to-day 
before the court of the world such dangerous conclusions as these. 

Is it really true that the blood of millions has been shed that right alone 
should rule the world, and that the monster of brute force, might, which in 
many places besides Germany has dominated the fate of millions of human be- 
ings, should be deposed forever? Is that really true? 

Is the law of justice to be honestly applied to all. or is it to be still merely a 
cloak to hide indefensible, selfish purposes and to be dispensed ad libitum as 
governments have the brute power to observe or ignore it as they like? 

Was the great war a conflict for true freedom under right for all alike, or was 
it a grim hoax played upon the ingenuous by the shrewd manipulators of clever 
phrases? 

These are all questions which any man in the streets who has ears can hear 
to-day. The world of honest, trustful men is waiting for the answer, and woe 
to the world if that answer be not honest, frank and true. 

Surely since the peace of the world depends upon the answer it is the solemn 
duty of all of us, especially of those of us whose duty it is to hold up before all 
alike the great principles of Christian morality by which alone mankind can 
live, to speak out fearlessly and clearly, lest being found faithless in such a 
world crisis, we forfeit forevsr our right to be listened to by honest men. 

If faith is to survive this hour of universal groping and striving, the men of 
faith must speak. If they are silent now, then whose the blame if all faith 
perishes from the earth? Is that, then, the real meaning of Malachy's dread 
prophecy — " religio depopulata "? 

The deepest purpose of this meeting is that faith may prevail — faith in gov- 
ernments, faith in rulers and congresses, and all that set of divine principles and 
influences and human agencies by which the world is held in order. 

This war, we were told again and again by all those responsible for the con- 
duct of the war, was for justice to all, for the inviolable rights of small nations, 
for the inalienable right, inherent in every nation, of self-determination. 

The purpose of this meeting to-night is very specific. The war can be justified 
only by the universal application of those principles. Let that application begin 
with Ireland. 

Ireland is the oldest nation and the longest sufferer. If these principles are 
not applied in her case, no matter what else may be done, there will be no com- 
plete justice, no genuine sincerity believable, and the war not bringing justice 
will not bring peace. 

Who was it who by the enunciation of these great principles united the peoples 
of the whole suffering earth? It was our own President — once Wilson of Amer- 
ica, now Wilson of the world. To-morrow he lands at Brest— Brest, the very 
port out from which Count Arthur Dillon sailed with his three thousand Irish 
troops to aid America to obtain from England the very principle of self-deter- 
mination, which to-day Ireland demands, and which we of America, in accord- 
ance with the principles enunciated by our President, to-day also are deter- 
mined by every legitimate and lawful and Christian means to aid Ireland to 
obtain. For Ireland equally with America fought in this conflict for right. 

America has fought in this war not for selfish aims. She has given her best 
blood, her hardest toil and her enormous wealth, and in return gets not one 
foot of soil, not a single material gain. She has a right to demand that for 
which alone she has made such tremendous sacrifices — justice to all. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 17 

Let the test of sincerity be Ireland. Then we will be convinced that truth 
still lives. 

Ireland must be allowed to tell the world freely what she wants, how she 
wishes to be governed. Speak up, Ireland ; make the world hear you ! Wake 
up, England, for the world is watching you ! 

May God grant that the voice of Ireland be heard and that at last peace, enter- 
ing Europe through Ireland's freedom, bring even to England its blessings and 
its fruits. 

I firmly believe that the day that England honestly faces her full duty to 
Ireland and fulfills it faithfully, God will bless her as she has not known His 
blessing for many centuries. For as with the individual soul, so with the 
soul of a nation — a clear conscience is the only door to happiness. 

We want this honest and frank expression of our principles, the principles 
upon which the stability of this Nation and every nation must now rest, to be 
borne undiluted across the sea, that first Ireland may hear and rejoice, that 
England may hear and consider, and that our President and all those about 
him at the great conference of peace may hear and heed. 

When those men in whose hands now rests the fate of all freemen arise, 
with their work for the welfare of the world completed, may one of the very 
first articles of that treaty of peace for all the world read : " We meant what 
we said — Ireland, like every other nation, must be free — one united Ireland, 
indivisible, unseparated now and forever." 

And the children of the Gael, scattered over all the earth, will hear that 
soul stirring message, and then, moved by a common impulse, they will turn 
their faces toward Erin, lift up their hands to Heaven, and at that moment 
of Ireland's triumph, will sing in unison the greatest Te Deum that ever arose 
to God. 

Mr. Dalton. Mr. Chairman, we ask at this time for favorable action 
on this resolution introduced by Mr. Gallagher not entirely as matter 
of favor or as a matter of beseeching, but almost, I might better say, 
as a matter of right and as a matter of justice, because to-day when 
we ask you to apply the principles of self-determination to the case 
of Ireland through the peace conference, we are doing so after ap- 
plauding the action of the President in applying the principle of 
self-determination to the peoples and nations against whom our boys 
have been fighting in this war. We have applauded each time self- 
determination was asked for the small nations comprising the Central 
Powers, and to-day we are asking you to apply the principles of self- 
determination to those who fought with us. 

Mr. Chairman, we are asking you to permit the people of Ireland 
to have the right of self-determination. We are asking that right for 
the people of a country which is as large in its area as the total area 
of the States of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont, Rhode Island, 
and New Hampshire together, which in 1841 supported a population 
of close to 9,000,000 people. At each successive census since that time 
the population of the country has decreased until to-day it stands at 
4,300,000. In other words, the population has been halved. 

Mr. Goodwin. I have understood that out of a population of ap- 
proximately four and one-half million in Ireland, that less than 
700,000 male citizens of military age now remain in that country, the 
rest having gone to newer countries, like America, Australia, and 
Canada, in quest of freedom. Can you verify that statement? 

Mr. Dalton. I understand that number is approximately correct. 

Judge Scanlan. Poland has given millions of people to America, 
and so has Germany, and so has Bohemia, and so have the various 
other countries; but in spite of that fact, their populations to-day are 
greater than they were 50 years ago. The Irish people love children. 
You do not have to be told about that. In spite of the fact that they 
H. Doc. 1832. 65-3 r 2 



18 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

have given people to America, they should in the ordinary course of 
events have increased in population; but, instead of that, their popu- 
lation to-day is only about one-half what it was 70 years ago. 

Mr. Dalton. While they were being cut in two in the past, the 
census of Great Britain showed at each 10-year period an increase 
in population, until in the 70 years which have elapsed the popula- 
tion of England, Scotland, and Wales has doubled, while the popula- 
tion of the adjoining island — Ireland — has been halved. 

Gentlemen, during our own Revolutionary War the people of 
Ireland were by ourexample rekindled with a fire which has broken 
out in each generation since that time in an armed rebellion. In each 
of the five generations men have shed their blood that Ireland 
might be free of the foreign yoke. What greater demonstration 
could be given of the desire of the Irish people to have a change in 
their form of government? 

But we do not ask this committee to suggest the form of gov- 
ernment the Irish people shall have. 

We ask, in accordance with the principles laid down by President 
Wilson, that the Irish people themselves shall have the right to 
say what form of government they shall have, and if they should 
decide, and I am sure they would, upon a separate and distinct form 
of government, they would have a country with three times the area 
of Belgium, with twice the area of Denmark, and with twice the 
area of Switzerland, which has maintained its neutrality through 
all this trouble. 

There can be no permanent peace in the world following the con- 
clusion of the Peace Conference, if those who have fought with us, 
whose sons have gone forth wearing the khaki and the blue, shall be 
denied the right of self-determination. 

Not only, therefore, as a matter of right and justice, but as a 
matter of wisdom for mankind, for the benefit of Ireland, for the 
benefit of the United States, for the benefit of England herself, it is 
essential that the Irish question be settled, and it can only be settled 
by reference of it to a fair plebiscite of the adult population of Ire- 
land. Self-determination is what this resolution requests; that is 
what we are here to-day for, to ask aad urge you gentlemen to vote 
for it. 

Hon. Thomas B. Smith, of New York, handed in the following 
resolutions for insertion in the record : 

Twenty-five thousand American citizens of Irish birth or blood, in meeting 
assembled at Madison Square Garden, New York, on the 10th day of December, 
1918, declare : 

That we rejoice with our fellow citizens at the victorious conclusion of tire 
war and the triumph of the ideals for which America entered the war. 

That we take justifiable pride in the record for bravery and patriotic fervor 
made by the men of the Irish race in the Army and Navy and the important part 
they played in the decisive battles for the democratic freedom of the world. 

That we applaud the determination of our President to be present at and par- 
ticipate in the proceedings of the peace congress, to the end that full effect be 
given to the principles enunciated by him in his addresses to Congress, his 
State papers, and his speeches, which have been accepted by the American peo- 
ple as the true reason and purpose of America's participation in the war. 

That the most important of those principles, that of self-determination as to 
the form of Government by the consent of the people who are to be governed, 
should be applied to the people of Ireland, in conformity with America's declara- 
tion. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 19 

That the Irish people are, by race, language, and traditions a distinct and 
separate people, that their country is a nation with well-defined geographical 
boundaries,, that they have exercised sovereign rights for a thousand years and 
have been deprived of them by force, that they have never surrendered or com- 
promised those rights, that they have not ceased to struggle morally and 
physically to recover those rights; that they are withheld from them by force, 
and that the only rule which prevails in their country to-day is the rule of force 
against the will of the people. 

That on every battle field from the earliest in the Revolution to the latest in 
France, where American ideals were fought for and American institutions and 
interests defended, the Irish race in America have freely given their blood and 
lives and linked themselves with everything so essentially American that with 
truth and confidence they may now say to their country in this supreme hour: 
" Stand for the people whose sons have stood for you and show grateful recog- 
nition as well as vindicate right and justice." 

Therefore, we respectfully but earnestly urge that our President declare at 
the peace congress that the people of Ireland should, as matter of right and jus- 
tice, be governed only in accordance with their consent and that the will of the 
majority, ascertained by a plebiscite of the adult population, be accepted as the 
sovereign will of the people, instead of the present foreign rule by force. 

John W. Goff, Chairman. 
Alfred J. Taxley, Secretary. 

STATEMENT OF HON. GEORGE F. BARRETT, JUDGE OF THE CIR- 
CUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, CHICAGO, ILL. 

Judge Barrett. Mr. Chairman, there are just a few things I want 
to make some remarks about, having to do with questions put by 
members of your committee to other speakers who have preceded me. 

I come from a district in Chicago represented in the House of 
Representatives in Washington by the Hon. Adolph J. Sabath, one 
of the members of this committee. Across the street from where I 
live begins the district of Hon. John W. Rainey. 

The district of which I am a resident is peopled by practically 
every nationality on the face of the globe. We have there in large 
numbers the Poles, and almost entirely the Poles are Catholic. We 
have there in large numbers the Bohemians, and they are largely Cath- 
olic. We have in large numbers the Germans, and they are Catholic. 
We have the Irish there, religiously the same, and yet that district, 
made up in that way, with possibly 80 per cent Catholics, has re- 
turned Congressman Sabath to Washington for five or six terms. I 
say this to you to indicate that there is no such thing as a religious 
issue in the matter in which we are now concerned. 

The Catholics at all times will recognize good in a non-Catholic. 
Time after time I have had occasion to appear on the same platform 
wihh Congressman Sabath, talking for the liberty of Poland. We 
have appeared on the same platform talking for the liberty of the 
Czecho-Slav and the Jugo-Slav, and all the other Austrian peoples. 
We hope, and know now, that the time is not far off when freedom 
will again be given to them. 

We believe, as the President of the United States believes, that 
freedom for those people is necessary for the preservation of the 
peace of the world. We know that the troubles of those foreign 
countries have caused a great deal of the friction and strife in 
Europe. We know that England herself has declared that this war 
was being prosecuted by herself and those with whom she was allied 
for the purpose of removing from the world those things which 



20 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

brought her trouble, due to ignorance concerning national existence 
and rights. This country, when it entered the war, declared that for 
the purpose of having a peace which should be permanent and uni- 
versal it was necessary to remove those causes which brought about 
the troubles in Europe. If that is true as to Poland and Bohemia 
and those' other nations — and we concede it is — by what process of 
reasoning can it be said to be untrue as to Ireland ? If it is necessary 
to remove the troubles in those other States which have existed for 
a number of years, and in some of them for centuries, it certainly, by 
the same logical process of reasoning, must be done as to Ireland, for 
the cause is exactly the same. 

We appear here to suggest that not only is it proper for the Con- 
gress of the United States to indicate its impressions, its' desires, and 
its judgment so far as Ireland is concerned but that it is the duty 
of Congress to do so in order that when this Peace Conference is 
concluded and the various things there discussed disposed of that 
there shall not be anything left unsettled which may in 10, 20, 30, or 
50 years, or longer, again cause throuble. 

With these things in mind, with the fact that Ireland has at all 
times done that which every other right-thinking nation has done to 
bring about peace, has done the same as this Nation has done to bring 
about peace in the world, I say to you gentlemen on this committee 
that you will be doing no less than justice to the American people 
and to those Americans who come of Irish forebears in recommending 
to the Congress of the United States the passage of this resolution. 

REMARKS OF HON. JAMES A. GALLIVAN, A REPRESENTATIVE IN 
CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF MASSACHUSETTS. 

Mr. Gallivan. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, you 
have heard from Philadelphia. Chicago, and New York. As a Rep- 
resentative in Congress from the city of Boston, whose citizenship is 
deeply interested in this whole subject, I feel that it is about time 
that the city of Boston should be heard from on the resolution of 
Congressman Gallagher. 

There are a few things I would like to remind this committee of, 
as Members of Congress, which, perhaps, for the moment they have 
forgotten. First of all, speed is necessary in' connection with this 
resolution. It asks President Wilson to do something at an early 
date. The Peace Conference is about to get together. What we 
hope for is early and favorable action, more favorable action than 
was given to a request which was sent abroad, signed by 168 Members 
of Congress, cabled to Lloyd-George. Some of you may remember 
the appeal which we made to the distinguished premier. We signed 
that appeal as Members of Congress, with Mr. Speaker Clark leading 
off. I personally filed that cable to Lloyd-George, after we entered 
the war, asking that Ireland be given self-government. I do not 
know whether Champ Clark ever heard from Lloyd-George or not, 
but I never did. 

We later had a visit from the British mission, and that mission 
was entertained on the floor of the House. It was headed by Hon. 
Arthur Balfour. I remember distinctly that the Members of the 
House were invited to shake hands with* Mr. Balfour. I declined to 
do so, because I could not forget something that I had heard years 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 21 

ago from my father's lips about some of the Balfour policies of the 
other days. I remember distinctly that a colleague in Congress, as 
we stood within earshot of Mr. Balfour, saying to me, " I know what 
is the matter with you. It is because he is Bloody Balfour." I said, 
" Yes ; I can not forget." I reminded my colleague of the petition 
which had been sent to Lloyd-George. Then my colleague said, 
" Let me ask Balfour about that." He said to Mr. Balfour, " There is 
Representative Gallivan, of Boston. He was the author of a resolu- 
tion which was sent by cable to Lloyd-George a few weeks ago, signed 
by 168 Congressmen, asking for self-government for Ireland now. 
No action has been taken on it." And Mr. Balfour replied, within 
my hearing, " Oh, I know all about that resolution, and if the gentle- 
man is the author of that resolution, you can say to him that favor- 
able action is about to be taken on Ireland's appeal." 

That was many months ago, Mr. Chairman, and Ireland still waits ! 
England failed once more, and now we have it on excellent authority 
that Ireland will not accept what England called "home rule," but 
will insist on a form of Government to be determined by a plebiscite 
of her adult population. 

What will our own country do to help her? 

If the recent participation of America in the world war — and I 
was one of those in Congress who voted in favor of our participa- 
tion — was really for democracy and the rights of peoples to govern 
themselves, what about Ireland? None too often have we reminded 
ourselves of President Wilson's declaration that the great war was 
fought in behalf of the self-determination of nations and the rights 
of even the smallest among them to freedom and their own develop- 
ment. Surely, then, there is no good reason why the claims of Ire- 
land should not be considered, at least as much as the claims of 
Serbia, Slavonia, Alsace-Lorraine, and the others. 

Ireland has contributed her due proportion of fighting men to the 
war. If anyone here doubts my statement, you have but to read with 
a little care the eloquent lists of the dead and wounded. 

Ireland has been struggling for self-government for seven cen- 
turies. Her people have lived in the valley of the shadow of death. 
Every now and then the light seemed to dawn upon them, only to 
be soon extinguished. In the midst of the greatest havoc that has 
ever wrecked the world their yearning was as keen as ever it was 
in all the long night. The dawn seems at last to be coming, I hope, 
to break upon a long day of blessed prosperity, and I hope that a 
year from now the orator who takes the place of the lamented Red- 
mond in College Green may be privileged to say, with Grattan, as 
he rose slowly in 1782 in her House of Commons : 

I am now to address a free people. Ages have passed away, and this is the 
first moment in which you could be distinguished by that appellation. I 
found Ireland on her knees. I watched over her with that eternal solicitude. 
I have traced her progress from injuries to arms, from arms to liberty. 
Ireland is now a nation. In that character I hail her, and, bowing to her august 
presence, I say, " Live forever." 

Let no man who loves liberty charge me with striking a discordant 
note in this appeal. No, sir; I am striking no discordant note. The 
world is ablaze with the triumph of democracy and the struggle for 
freedom is on. It will not end until the shackles and the manacles 
fall from off every bondman, and until there shall not be a foot of 



22 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

the earth, which the Psalmist calls God's footstool, that shall not 
be made too sacred to bear the tread of a slave. America yearned 
toward freedom in '76, and Boston gave it to her through the 
evacuation of my city by the troops of the enemy. Ireland has had 
her national aspiration, too, and that aspiration is, under God, to be 
realized. Terrible is the price that we have paid, but whatever comes, 
whatever may befall, of one thing I am firmly convinced, that Amer- 
ica will never be satisfied until the end for which we are struggling 
shall be attained — the riddance of the world of the diabolical phil- 
osophy which holds that man has a right to property in man; that 
national aspiration is a something not to be realized, but to be crushed 
out of a people; and until the principle which is the very corner 
stone of our Government be recognized, that government depends 
upon the consent of the governed. 

Mr. Chairman, I know you will be glad to hear from one of the 
most distinguished clergymen in the city of Boston, and I present 
to you the Rev. Philip J. O'Donnell, of my city. 

STATEMENT OF REV. PHILIP J. O'DONNELL, OF BOSTON, MASS. 

Rev. Father O'Donnell,. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the 
committee, there was recently a mass meeting of 18,000 American 
citizens assembled in Boston made up of all denominations and of 
all classes and races, there being present representatives of the 
Polish, the Jewish, and the Slavonic races as well as the Irish. Some 
descendants of the old Puritans as well, who still love liberty now 
as always, joined with us, and they asked that I represent them be- 
fore your committee and ask of you that which the President has 
promised to all Nations, great and small, self-determination for 
Ireland. 

There is hardly any need of my going over the historic conditions 
in Ireland, because you have already received that information from 
other speakers. But there are some things that, in the course of 
events, I should say. 

Our ancestors fought here. I am American born, born within the 
shadow of Bunker Hill, and my people have been here for more than 
one generation, and I speak, therefore, as an American of Irish de- 
scent, and as proud of both as I am of my religious convictions. As 
such I come to ask that through this self-determination, the wrongs 
of the centuries may be cared for and prevented in the future. 

Not only was Ireland a nation before Christ was born, not only 
has it stood a nation for 12 centuries and during these latter cen- 
turies has been still a nation — but a nation subject to a foreign body 
that has been refused its rights. 

My dear old grandmother was a Presbyterian, born in the north of 
Ireland, and she could neither read nor write because it was a crime 
to receive an education in Ireland. There was a price on the heads 
of schoolmasters, as well as on the heads of priests. And I will say 
here, with great gratitude to the Presbyterians of the north of Ire- 
land in those days when the priest was hunted as the wolf, he went, 
oftentimes, into the homes of Presbyterians and there received that 
hospitality which has made the Irish famous. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 23 

The trend of the times has compelled England to do something. 
But why should Ireland be obliged to accept anything from a for- 
eign nation? Why should Ireland not be able to take care of her- 
self? I believe she is able and ready. That is why I appeal to you. 
They have the brain and the brawn; they have the purity of their 
women and the splendid ability of their men; and they have every 
national characteristic. The}' have a nation now over there. Being 
Irish, I have been fighting for her freedom all my life, and I have 
always felt it was the duty of every Irishman of American nativity 
to work for the interests of the cradle land of the race, and work 
all the time for her. 

We have already, by the wonderful victories procured mostly by 
our armies, pledged ourselves in the words of the President, as a 
nation, through him, to give to every other nation the rights we 
have, the right to live in happiness with each other and be equal be- 
fore the law, and the right to make the laws. In the beginning of 
this country of ours they would not stand being dominated by people 
of a foreign power, because England was foreign to this country, and 
was trying to enslave this country. 

Our people rose up in arms for liberty and freedom. The time for 
armies is rapidly going by because we are all desirous of having peace 
among all nations. And our people demand that might shall be no 
longer right in any nation. We ask that for Ireland, one of the oldest 
nations of Europe ; we demand that by the right of all Irish in Amer- 
ica who have been for America from the day they first landed here, 
with their money, talents, their ability, so many of them signers of 
the Declaration of Independence, so many of them working in the 
ranks. When the Revolutionary Army was at Valley Forge, in pov- 
erty, it was the Irish in Philadelphia who gave the money to take 
care of that Army. The best blood of Irishmen has been given to 
the cause of liberty and freedom in America and there is hardly a 
family to-day of any prominence in the United States that can not 
trace Irish blood back somewhere in its history. 

I have lived 61 years in the city of Boston. Congressman Gallivan 
says it is the greatest Irish city in the world. I believe it is. And 
at the same time I believe, before God, there is no city in all the world 
that is more democratic, and no city in America which is more thor- 
oughly American. 

So I come representing the cardinal archbishop of Boston, the 
bishop of Boston, and 700 priests. I come representing 1,000,000 
Roman Catholics of every nationality. 

I have a petition addressed to the President, signed by the cardinal 
archbishop, the bishop, and priests of Boston, signed by the people 
of all nationalities asking for the one thing that brings us here to-day 
from Calfornia to the Atlantic Ocean, and from Canada down to 
Florida and the Mexican border. 

We come to ask justice, and this war was fought for justice and 
right, and we ask that you, our Representatives, will remember that 
20,000,000 and more of Irishmen and their descendants ask of you 
for that clear little old island so fondly loved by its children all over 
the world, in the name of the exiles who died here on our shores, in 
the name of the soldiers who have fought and died on fields of battle, 



24 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

in the name of sailors who have raised the Stars and Stripes so high, 
and in the name of God, that you give to Ireland self-determination. 

As Cardinal O'Connell said in his great speech at Madison Square 
Garden Tuesday night : " Ireland has fought for more than seven cen- 
turies for the right of the governed to be ruled only with their own 
consent." That is the principle which ultimately won America's free- 
dom ; and it is because America understands that principle that Ire- 
land to-day relies upon America to echo it throughout the world for 
Ireland's liberty. 

Ireland must be allowed to, tell the world freely what she wants, 
how she wishes to be governed. 

Ireland, among the small nations, is the longest sufferer. If the 
principle of right and justice for all is not applied in her case, there 
will be no complete justice, and the war, not bringing justice, will not 
bring peace. 

Who was it but our own President Wilson who, by the enunciation 
of the great principles of justice, united the peoples of the whole 
world ? 

America has fought in this war not for selfish aims. She has given 
her best blood, her hardest toil and her enormous wealth, and in 
return gets not one foot of soil, not a single material gain. She has 
the right to demand that for which alone she has made such tre- 
mendous sacrifices — justice to all. 

[Telegram to the chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs.] 

San Francisco, Cal., December IS, 1918. 

The following resolution was adopted at a regular meeting of the Inter- 
national Brotherhood of Boilermakers, Iron-Ship Builders and Helpers of 
America, Lodge No. 6. San Francisco : 
Whereas one of the purposes of the United States entering war was for the 

freedom of small nations, and, 
Whereas Ireland, one of the oldest of the small nations, has for seven centuries 

suffered from the domination of a foreign power against its will, and 
Whereas the success of all American wars has been largely due to citizens of 

Irish origin and extraction, and, 
Whereas, there is now pending before Congress a resolution demanding that the 

forthcoming Peace Conference apply self determination to Ireland as well as 

to Belgium, Poland, Serbia, and the other small nations, therefore, be it 

Resolved, That we, the officers and members of the International Brother- 
hood of Boilermakers, Iron-Ship Builders and Helpers of America of Local 
No. 6, in regular meeting assembled recognize the claims of Ireland as just, and 
demand that favorable action be taken upon this resolution and that this resolu- 
tion be telegraphed to the chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations, 
House of Representatives. 

International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, 

Iron-Ship Builders and Helpers of America, Local No. 6, 
The Anglo Building, Sixteenth and Mission Streets, San Francisco, Cal. 

Mr. McLaughlin. Mr. Chairman, all of the previous speakers 
have been of one faith. I would now like to call on Mr. James 
Thompson, of Kentucky, who is not of the same faith. 

STATEMENT OF MR. JAMES THOMPSON, OF LOUISVILLE, KY. 

Mr. Thompson. Mr. Chairman, I am not a speaker and I will only 
say a word. I come from Kentucky, which, I believe, was discovered 
by an Irishman, and a large part of our population is Irish, and they 
all have a very great interest in this subject. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 25 

I only want to indorse what Judge Scanlan and others have so very 
well said. We all are very much interested in this subject, and we 
hope you will consider the resolution favorably and report it to the 
House of Representatives. 

STATEMENT OF HON. JAMES A. HAMILL, A REPRESENTATIVE IN 
CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY. 

Mr. Hamill. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, I 
shall express but a thought or two which I think may be helpful to 
the committee, and then conclude. 

This is an old question, and until the present war, a cause well- 
nigh hopeless. But the purposes avowed by the United States in 
declaring war, and the lending of billions of bullion, and millions 
of men to its support give us hope that the cause will be triumphant. 

We, according to the words of the President, availed ourselves of 
the glorious privilege of spending our blood and our treasure in 
behalf of the principles that gave us birth. We went to war to make 
the world safe for democracy. We saw languishing under the heel 
of an oppressor beautiful Belgium. We looked to the east and we 
saw a condition even still more hopeless. We saw the Poles, the 
Croats, the Serbians, and the other small nations languishing under 
the despotism of the central empires and we declared that not only 
would they be emancipated from the shackles which bound them to 
the central empires, but that the entire world would be made safe 
for democracy. What did we mean by that? That meant that na- 
tions, instead of being subdivided on historical lines, would be sub- 
divided on ethnological lines. That is to say, just like every family 
should be permitted to divide according to the trend of its genius, 
and that because some centuries ago one nation held another in 
servitude that would be no reason why that situation should be con- 
tinued. 

The Celt is absolutely distinct and different from the Saxon and 
for 700 years the people of Ireland have made a protest against being 
held in bondage. The protest has been made in the face of the world 
and has oftentimes gone unheeded. But now, according to our 
avowed purposes it will, we hope and confidently believe, be heeded. 

Let us get out of the realm of passionate elocution and get down to 
calm facts. Why have not the people of Ireland more right than any 
other single race to ask the Congress of this country to declare in 
favor of their freedom? There is attributed to Mr. Josephus 
Daniels, our splendid Secretary of the Navy, that 40 per cent of our 
Navy were men of Irish blood, and that one-third of our Army were 
men of Irish blood. 

Now, if other nations who are not so extensively represented in the 
citizenship of our country by their descendants have a right to de- 
mand freedom, so much the stronger reason for the right of the 
Irish people to demand emancipation. 

Let me conclude by saying this, that we have made a glowing state- 
ment, which, if carried into practice, will ring down the centuries — 
to make the world safe for democracy. Now, if we are not a race of 
mere spread-eagle proclaimers, if we are genuine and not fraudulent, 
if we are real and not sham, if we are practical and not fanciful, then 
we will have the courage to reduce this glowing profession to a con- 



26 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

crete and specific instance, and you, Mr. Chairman and members of 
this committee, will report this resolution, and you and I, and all our 
colleagues in both Houses will pass it without delay. 
(Thereupon a recess was taken until 8 o'clock p. m.) 

EVENING SESSION. 

The committee assembled, pursuant to the taking of recess, at 8 
o'clock p. m. 

STATEMENT OF MR. THOMAS P. FAY, OF LONG BRANCH, N. J. 

Mr. Fay. Ireland appears at the bar of justice in the court of the 
world, at a peace conference that is to be held in France, and asks for 
justice, and she calls the nation that rules her to the bar to answer 
that call. They are to decide in that court whether her wrongs shall 
be redressed and her rights shall be respected. 

She pleads for the end of coercion ; she pleads for the right of self- 
determination ; and, greatest of all, she pleads for the right of liberty. 
She pleads with the same force and the same tone that that great 
American, Patrick Henry, pleaded the cause of American liberty. 
" Is life so sweet," he said, " as to be purchased at the price of chains 
and slavery? If such be, then give me liberty or give me death." 

The Irish people have been longer in bondage than any other peo- 
ple on the face of the earth. They are prisoners now ; they are occu- 
pying the jails of their oppressors. The prisoners of all lands are 
being released, but the patriots of Ireland are now in loathsome 
foreign jails simply because they are Irish patriots. 

Everyone cried out against the massacre of the Armenians ; every- 
body sympathizes with the Jews for the pogroms that have gone on ; 
everyone feels sorry for the Poles. But why do the Americans re- 
main quiet when the worst injustice of all has been meted out for 
centuries to the Irish nation? 

We could not get any stronger language in favor of the rights of 
that nation than that which has been uttered by the President of the 
United States. He has pleaded the cause of small nations in no un- 
certain words. 

Could anything be more clear than the attitude of the Amer- 
ican Government when it was called upon to settle the affairs 
of the world? The President of the United States was allowed to 
be the spokesman for the world. He was the spokesman for the 
allies and he laid down the principles upon which they would meet 
and settle this greatest of world's wars. And none is better able 
to determine its interpretation as they sit around the peace table 
in France, and none is committed more to it than the Members of 
the Houses of Congress who stand behind these principles enun- 
ciated by the President of the United States. 

They are what our country is committed to; they are what you 
are committed to as Members of Congress ; they are what the Ameri- 
can people are committed to. They are committed to justice to all 
nations, great and small; they are committed to the rights of 
humanity and to the rights of the people. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 27 

I will quote the language of the President to Congress on the 2d of 
April, 1917, when this country was committed to enter this great war. 
In closing, he said : 

But the right is more precious than peace, and we shall fight for the things 
which we have always carried nearest our hearts — for democracy, for the right 
of those who submit to authority to have a voice in their own governments, 
for the rights and liberties of small nations, for a universal dominion of right 
by such a concert of free peoples as shall bring peace and safety to all nations 
and make the world itself at last free. 

Is there a man in Congress who is not committed to that, when 
immediately after that address you passed the act declaring war? 
You remember you laid down the principle upon which we entered 
it ; that it is the right of small nations and the right of free peoples 
to govern themselves. Every American is committed to it, and he 
can not get away from it and still be an honorable and true and 
straightforward American, who wants to follow and live up to the 
institutions and principles which have been established here, and 
which we all love so well. 

The world is turning its solicitous eyes upon us. France, Italy, 
Serbia, and Poland are all turning their eyes toward us to find out 
whether we are honest in the declarations which we have made. 

But, gentlemen, until justice is done for Irish cause, the men of 
Australia and Canada and America, who have made the greatest 
sacrifice of the centuries, will never let the world rest in peace until 
their dear cause is heard at the proper tribunal and settled honestly 
and right. 

Mr. Gorman. Mr. Chairman, the committee this afternoon ar- 
ranged a program, and the organizations represented here are very 
anxious that the speakers shall limit themselves to the subject matter 
of the resolution before the committee, and that no speaker shall be 
allowed more than the time allotted to him. 

The next speaker is Mr. Charles J. Dolan, of Missouri. 

STATEMENT OF MR. CHARLES J. DOLAN, OF ST. LOUIS, MO. 

Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, the question was 
asked this morning by the chairman as to when the common law was 
introduced in Ireland, and that has suggested to me that it would 
clarify matters if I were to recall the principal facts upon which the 
present relations between England and Ireland are based. 

I have had, exceptional opportunities for studying this question 
during two years when I represented an Irish constituency in the 
British Parliament. 

Ireland was a nation with her recorded history for at least a 
thousand years before the English invasion. She was converted to 
Christianity 150 years before Saint Augustine arrived on his mission 
to convert the English. During the sixth and seventh centuries Ireland 
was the headquarters of missionary effort in Europe and was the 
center of learning. Her schools were crowded with students from 
every European country, and so many were there attending the great 
school of Armagh that one street in that town is still known as Saxon 
Street. 



28 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

When the great religious Council of Constance was in session 
Ireland was recognized as one of the five ancient sovereign nations 
of the world. 

In 1172 the English came. Holding at first only a very small part of 
the eastern coast, they gradually extended their conquest during the 
succeeding 500 years, in spite of the persistent opposition, until by 
the end of Elizabeth's reign the conquest of Ireland was apparently 
complete. In the next reign, that of James the First, took place the 
plantation of Ulster with English and Scotch settlers. The Ulster 
question dates from this time. A little later, in 1641, the native 
Irish rose in rebellion, and for eight years, during which time it was 
governed by a confederation of Irish and Anglo-Irish chieftains, 
Ireland was lost to the English crown. In 1649 Ireland was recon- 
quered by Cromwell, ami so thoroughly was the work accomplished 
that " the curse of Cromwell " is the bitterest malediction on the lips 
of an Irish peasant. It was at this time that the population of 
Ireland fell to 800.000 persons, as mentioned by Judge Scanlan this 
morning. The next event of importance was the winning of a free 
Irish Parliament in 178:2 by the Protestant leader Henry Grattan 
and his Volunteers. Sixteen years afterwards English intrigue 
brought about the Rebellion of 1798. This was participated in by 
the Presbyterians of Ulster under the Leadership of Wolfe Tone and 
Henry Joy McCracken and by the Catholics of the southeast led by 
Bagenal Harvey, a Protestant landlord of County Wexford. This 
rebellion, like all preceding ones, was extinguished in the blood of 
countless thousands of Irishmen. 

The next notable event was the infamous union of the Parliaments 
of Great Britain and Ireland in 1800. The situation at this time may 
be best understood by reference to some comparative statistics. In the 
year o( the union the population of Great Britain was ten and one-half 
million, and the population of Ireland was live and one-half million. 
Both countries possessed a national debt. Ireland's national debt was 
v-2t.000.000 while England's was £450,000,000. In 18 years England 
increased Irish taxation nearly twice and a half what it had been in the 
year of the union, but increased her own taxation by only one-quarter. 
By 1914 the taxation in England had been decreased 3 shillings per 
head compared with the taxation in 1819, while the taxation in 
Ireland had been increased 29 shillings per head. That is. Great 
Britain had received roundly a 5 per cent relief in taxation while 
Ireland bail been burdened -200 per cent. 

Two years after the union occurred the heroic and ill-fated rebel- 
lion led by Robert Emmet, and after this effort Ireland turned for a 
time to constitutional methods under the leadership of Daniel O'Con- 
nell, and demanded repeal of the Act of Union, a demand which was 
fundamentally different from the demand of home rule, inasmuch 
as the former seeks to restore an independent Parliament, while the 
latter seeks delegated authority from the English Parliament. Con- 
stitutional methods proved as futile as armed rebellion, and the 
Irish Nationalists again had recourse to armed rebellion, again under 
the leadership of ;i Protestant landlord. Smith O'Brien. This revolt 
was soon quelled, and was followed 19 years later by the Fenian 
uprising, after the temporary failure of which the majority of the 
Irish people turned once again to constitutional methods under the 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 29 

leadership, first of Butt, then of Parnell, and finally of the late John 
E. Redmond. Once again faith in constitutional methods was shat- 
tered and the result was the rebellion of 1916. 

The Irish nation has never voluntarily submitted to English 
rule at any period of its history. There has never been a moment 
since the fateful year of 1172, when, if the British armed forces had 
been withdrawn, Ireland would not have established an independent 
native government. It is the boast of Irish patriots that at least 
once in every generation Irish blood has been shed in attempting 
to end the English usurpation. At this moment Ireland is held in 
subjection by a British army of 250,000 men, and British and Irish 
jails hold more than 500 leaders of the Irish people, whose sole 
offense is that they have organized to win the freedom of theii 
country. 

The Irish nation has never surrendered its sovereignty. Although 
the majority would have accepted a measure of home rule at any 
time during the 40 years preceding 1916, it must be understood that 
they regarded home rule as merely an experiment in government, 
and that they expected that if the experiment should have proved 
successful Great Britain would have completed the reform and done 
full justice by restoring Ireland's national independence. 

Mr. Gorman. Mr. Chairman, the next speaker will be Mrs. Adelia 
Christie, of Ohio. 

STATEMENT OF MRS. ADELIA CHRISTIE, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO. 

Mrs. Christie. Mr. Chairman, representing the United Irish So- 
cieties of northern Ohio, I beg leave to add my voice and the voices 
of those whom I have the honor to represent to the pleas that have 
been made here for justice to Ireland. 

We believe at this time that the passage of this resolution, intro- 
duced by Mr. Gallagher through the Congress of the United States, 
would strengthen the United States Peace Commission in any de- 
mands, or in a demand which we hope they will make for Ireland at 
the coming peace conference. 

We ask, Mr. Chairman, only for a free Ireland. We ask that, in 
conjunction with all the other small nations, Ireland may be allowed 
to work out her own development, to look after her own interests, 
and to be governed and directed by a government of her own people. 
To this end, Mr. Chairman, we ask this honorable body to report 
favorably on this resolution and thereby gain for themselves the 
right to be enrolled with the galaxy of great men who believe in right 
and justice and in the enunciated principles for which this great 
American Republic entered and terminated successfully the present 
war. 

Mr. Gorman. The next speaker will be Mr. Clancy, of Minnesota. 

STATEMENT OF MR. J. M. CLANCY, OF ST. PAUL, MINN. 

Mr. Clancy. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, I 
am here representing the St. Paul Trades and Labor Assembly, a 
federation with over 105 affiliated organizations and a membership 
of some 17,000. 



30 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

Some two weeks ago at a special meeting, which they called for 
that purpose, they took up the question of self-determination for Ire- 
land and the vote in favor of it was unanimous. They were told 
that the matter would possibly come before Congress. They won- 
dered why any nation that had loved peace and loved liberty like the 
American people would have to have a delegation appear before them 
to ask them to try to get that same liberty and justice for another 
nation. 

When I was coming over from St. Paul the mayor of our city, Mr.. 
Lawrence G. Hodgson, gave me a letter addressed to me, and that 
letter reads as follows: 

December 10, 1918. 
Mr. J. M. Clancy. 

Commissioner of Parks, Playgrounds, and Public Buildings, 

St. Paul, Minn. 

My Deae Commissioner : I understand that you are going to Washington and 
that you may have an opportunity to present to some official body the sentiments 
of our people relative to the recognition in the peace conference of the principle 
of self-determination for Ireland. 

We had a very large and enthusiastic meeting of representative citizens a 
few days ago, in which this question was discussed very earnestly, and in 
a very remarkable spirit of patriotism, entirely free from bitterness and 
political bias. 

The sentiment of that meeting was not the sentiment of any opposition to 
England, but a sentiment that the principle of democracy and self-government 
as vindicated in the war should be extended without discrimination to all 
peoples of the world in order that the readjustments of civilization should be 
without exception based upon the ideal that all social governmental processes 
should be the free expression of the people. 

It would seem to be wholly illogical to apply the principle of self-determina- 
tion only in part. The processes of democracy must include all peoples or 
they will in a vital sense exclude all peoples. 

It was the earnest sentiment of our meeting that if a way could be found 
to take care of the Irish question along the lines of self-determination that 
there would be a much greater cohesion of national sentiment in America in 
favor of the program made up at the peace table. 

If you find opportunity to present this view as the expression of a large 
number of St. Paul citizens, 1 will greatly appreciate it. 
Respectfully yours, 

L. G. Hodgson, 

Mayor. 

STATEMENT OF MR. STEPHEN J. McDONO UGH, OF BALTIMORE, MD. 

Mr. McDonough. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, 
I come from the city of Baltimore, which, as you know, has a large 
population of people of Irish blood and extraction. I live in the 
congressional district of Congressman Linthicum, who is a member 
of your committee and who will inform you that he has been elected 
four consecutive terms by the vote of the Irish people in his district. 
I just mention that to you to demonstrate that a man's nationality 
or creed is never taken into consideration by those of Irish birth; 
that, first of all, they want fitness, and nationality and creed are 
secondary considerations. 

I had the honor of representing that district in the Legislature of 
Maryland for three terms, and during the war session of the legis- 
lature I introduced a resolution identical with the Gallagher resolu- 
tion, which is before you, and I am happy to say that that resolu- 
tion passed both the house and the senate of the Maryland Legisla- 



THE IKISH QUESTION. 31 

ture without a dissenting vote, showing you gentlemen the sentiment 
of Maryland in behalf of self-determination for Ireland. 

We are to have a meeting at the Auditorium Theater next Sunday 
night, and I am confident that there will be the largest outpouring of 
our citizens that has ever taken place in the city of Baltimore in 
behalf of self-determination for Ireland. 

I trust you gentlemen of this committee will take into consideration 
what the Irish Parliament did many years ago when our country 
was fighting for its independence. The Irish Parliament was in 
hearty accord with the Americans and did everything in their power 
to assist the Americans. 

Nearly 50 per cent of the Kevolutionary Army was Irish, and in 
all our wars from that day to the present time no one can say that 
the Irish have not done their full duty. 

So I sincerely hope and believe you will take the action our Presi- 
dent has outlined in his pronouncement that no people shall be 
forced to live under a sovereignty which they do not wish to live 
under; that you will take that seriously and that self-determination 
will be accomplished for Ireland as it has been for the Poles, and 
the Czecho-Slavs, and the Jygo-Slavs, and all the other oppressed 
peoples, with which we are in hearty accord. 

Mr. Gorman. Our next speaker, Mr. Chairman, will be Father 
Howard, of Oswego, N. Y. 

STATEMENT OF REV. TIMOTHY HOWARD, OF OSWEGO, N. Y. 

Rev. Father Howard. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the com- 
mittee, I simply want to emphasize my feelings in appreciation of 
the fact that you gentlemen, who are in a position to report this 
resolution out of committee, will do so from the point of view that 
as Americans you are called upon to exercise toward Ireland the 
same sentiments that were exercised toward us in the dark days of 
our sufferings, when we were fighting for independence. 

A few months ago Gen. Pershing crossed the seas as the com- 
mander in chief of an army, an army that went over there to do its 
best in order that the people of the world might be free and enjoy 
the liberty that this country guarantees to its citizens. In doing so 
he went to the tomb of Lafayette and placed thereon a wreath and 
said, " Lafayette, we have come to pay the debt we owe to you and the 
French, from which you sprung across the seas a hundred years ago 
to help us in our trying difficulties." 

I assure you, gentlemen of the committee, if you take into con- 
sideration the feelings of the Irish and the Irish Americans in this 
country, if you report this bill, as we earnestly pray you to do, so 
that it will come on the floor of the House for a vote, that not a 
hundred years will pass before the gratitude of the Irish in Ireland 
and their descendants in America shall be laid at your feet, grati- 
tude that shall have its origin in the hearts of the Irish people for 
the freedom that shall be theirs for all the generations to come. 

The Chairman. I would like some of the speakers to address 
themselves to the question of the propriety of the Congress passing a 
resolution requesting our commissioners to the peace conference to 
urge the dismemberment of a nation with which we were associated 
in the war. We are all in sympathy with the spirit of the resolu- 



32 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

tion; we believe the Irish to be a great people and feel that they 
should have the right of self determination. I believe such is the 
sentiment of the people of this country. The serious question is the 
propriety of this resolution in circumstances in which our Govern- 
ment is confronted. I have had a request for hearings in opposition 
to it, and I would like somebody to address himself to the propriety 
of our passing the resolution. 

Mr. Ragsdale. May I ask. Mr. Chairman, does the passage of 
this joint resolution necessarily mean the dismemberment of any of 
our allies ? 

The Chairman. It does not necessarily mean that ; but it does mean 
that we urge action by our commissioners to the peace conference 
which would lead to that. This resolution requests our commissioners 
to the peace conference to urge the freedom and separation and self- 
determination of Ireland. If that does not mean the dismemberment 
of the British Empire, I do not know what it does mean. 

Judge Scanlan. Mr. Chairman, we have a set program this even- 
ing, and the speakers, because of the fact that they have been told 
that they are going to be limited in time, have been trying to con- 
centrate their thoughts, and its would •probably be very difficult for 
them to go into that phase of the situation at this time, and I would 
suggest that to-morrow morning the speakers give it special atten- 
tion. 

The Chairman. I would be ver}^ glad if some one would deal with 
that phase of the situation before the conclusion of the hearing. 

Mr. Kennedy. Our next speaker, Mr. Chairman, will be Mrs. 
Ellen Ryan Jolly, of Rhode Island, past president of the ladies' 
auxiliary of the Ancient Order of Hibernians of America. 

STATEMENT OF MRS. ELLEN RYAN JOLLY, LL. D., OF PAWTUCKET, 
R. I., PAST PRESIDENT OF THE LADIES' AUXILIARY OF THE 
ANCIENT ORDER OF HIBERNIANS IN AMERICA. 

Mrs. Jolly. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee: In 
the few minutes allotted me to-night to address you upon the subject 
matter of these resolutions. I shall not have time to present my views 
as fully or as elaborately as I would wish. For 700 years the Irish 
people have been subjected to grievous wrongs. But now we may 
entertain the hope that the day of their deliverance is not far distant. 
The resolutions before you provide that self-determination shall be 
given to the people of Ireland ; that they shall finally and for all time 
decide for themselves the system of government under which they 
shall live. I am confident that this honorable committee will report 
a resolution through which the plenipotentiaries at the peace confer- 
ence on the soil of France, representing the various nations of the 
world, will be apprised of the widespread conviction in America that 
the doctrine of self-determination shall be applied to the settlement 
of the Irish question. I am confident, too, Mr. Chairman and gentle- 
men of the committee, that Congress will pass the resolution, for no 
man or body of men can oppose a proposition which merely makes a 
request that freedom to choose its own way of life shall be granted 
to a long-suffering people. 

In the early days of this country there lived here a gentleman 
named Charles Thompson. He was born and educated in the north of 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 33 

Ireland. In religion he was a Presbyterian and, like every true 
patriot, he knew that there is nothing in religion unfavorable to free- 
dom. He was secretary of the Continental Congress during all the 
deliberations of that body. After the passage of the stamp act John 
Adams, of Massachusetts, wrote to Charles Thompson and said: 
"My dear sir: The stamp act has passed. We must light the torch 
of economy." But the Irish-born Thompson replied : " We shall light 
the torch of national independence." That was the spirit which ani- 
mated the bosom of Thompson. That was the Irish of it. Our devo- 
tion to that doctrine, Mr. Chairman, causes us to assemble here to- 
night. We are here in liberty's name. We are here to ask the Con- 
gress of the United States to pass a resolution whose purpose is to 
permit Ireland, the oldest of the nations, to light the torch of Irish 
national independence. 

No one who knows the history of Ireland or the history of the 
Irish people in America will hesitate to lend his support to this 
meritorious cause. This proposition should command — and I am 
sure it does command — universal assent. It involves a basic prin- 
ciple of government which can not be stifled — the fundamental prin- 
ciple proclaimed by the Revolutionary fathers of America which will 
ring down through the ages until time is no more — that governments 
derive their just powers from the consent of the governed. There 
were 28 persons of my name who fought at Bunker Hill, 28 Ryans, 
and I rejoice that their names will ever remain upon the American 
roll of honor. 

The Continental Congress was composed very largely of men of 
Irish blood. Up to the coming of the French, the Irish in the Revo- 
lutionary War, according to the records of Gallowa}% numbered 100 
to 1 in comparison with the other European nationals who partici- 
pated. They stood beside Washington and supported him through- 
out the great struggle. They were with him at Valley Forge when 
the Tories of that day and generation were breaking his heart. 

Ireland, out of her poverty, has contributed much to America. 
Her sons have always been ready to bear their portion of the burden 
in every crisis through which this country has passed. This is the 
record of history. 

The names of Emmet, Wolfe Tone, and Lord Fitzgerald have 
been prominently mentioned in the course of this hearing here to-day, 
but thus far no one has mentioned the name of Flood. Among the 
most illustrious of the united Irishmen was the namesake of the 
chairman of this committee. Mr. Chairman, I salute you, a son of 
the Gael, and I know that Ireland's cause must be safe in your 
hands. 

Mr. Gorman. Mr. Chairman, our next speaker is Mrs. Mary Mc- 
Whorter, national president Ladies' Auxiliary, Ancient Order of 
Hibernians of America. 

STATEMENT OF MRS. MARY McWHORTER. OF CHICAGO, ILL. 

Mrs. McWhorter. Mr. Chairman and members of the commit- 
tee, at this time 

Mr. Kennedy (interposing). You are national president of the 
Ladies' Auxiliary of the Ancient Order of Hibernians of America? 
H. Doc. 1832. 65-3 3 



34 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

Mrs. McWhorter. Yes. I am here, Mr. Chairman, to represent 
75,000 American women — women of Irish blood. The great majority 
of those 75,000 women are mothers of sons who have made a wonder- 
ful contribution to present American history. 

Since Good Friday, 1917, when our great President Wilson de- 
clared that it was necessary for America to take a hand in settling 
European troubles, in the discharge of my official duties I have visited 
no less than 30 States in the Union. I have spoken in towns and 
villages to the number of five and six in each one of those States, and 
for what purpose ? To carry a word of cheer to the mothers of those 
boys who have gone over there, some of them never to come back, 
Mr. Chairman. 

It was my particular duty to carry a word of cheer to help keep 
the morale of my people. The sons that those mothers gave to 
American greatness were sons that were badly needed in the homes. 
Their salaries were needed, and you will admit that a soldier's pay 
is a mighty poor substitute for the salaries those boys were bringing 
in weekly to the mother who is concerned with the things of the 
home. 

The statesmen speak in great big terms of things that, God help us, 
we poor women sometimes do not understand, and yet each of you 
gentlemen owes something to your mothers; you owe something of 
your position to your mother; and, as I have gone among those poor 
mothers, as I have addressed them, I have tried to take to them some- 
thing to cheer them along, because this war came upon us suddenly, 
and a great many of them did not understand why their boys were 
taken out of their homes and sent over there. They were not con- 
cerned very much with the things outside of their home. The world 
passed on and left them behind, if you will, and it was my melancholy 
privilege to tell groups in these villages, in the towns, and in the cities 
the wonderful way that the administration of our Government was 
taking care of the material comforts and needs of those boys; that 
they need not have any fear that the Government of the United States 
would leave any stone unturned for the physical safety of those boys. 

Then I carried a word of cheer about the spiritual safety of the boys. 

Each time I made my talk they came up and passed by me. Press- 
ing my hand with their toil-worn hands, they would say, " I have 
one boy," " I have two boys," " I have three boys," and " four and 
five over there." They would say, " Do you think. Mrs. MacWhorter, 
before they come back they will set old Ireland free ? " That is the 
burden of the thoughts of the women I represent to-night. 

I had the honor to come to "Washington last July to represent a 
mothers' mission, bearing a petition to the President of the United 
States from the mothers, asking him, in the name of their boys, that 
they had given to him, to vindicate those wonderful principles of 
democracy that nowhere on earth will you find the principles of 
democracy kept so pure and so fresh as in this great American 
country of ours. 

I came here from Ireland a number of years ago, but I did not 
come here in a spirit of hatred, and at no time in the discharge of my 
official duties have I preached a legacy of hatred to my people. I 
have preached only remembrance, because there is danger in forget- 
ting. But as the vision of hope has flowered forth in all the bright- 
ness and purity of that land over there, I prayed that that dear land 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 35 

would some time come into her own, and that hope was never brighter 
than at present. 

The case of Ireland, so far, has been taken very good care of. 
Other distinguished speakers will follow me, so I am not concerned 
with facts and figures. I am speaking to you in the names of the 
mothers of those boys that have helped to make such a wonderful 
record for our America on the other side. 

You have heard about the wonderful contribution that Ireland 
has made to American greatness and to the world's greatness, if 
you will. Ireland, bound in slavery, making such a wonderful con- 
tribution to the greatness of this country and other countries where 
they have obtained a foothold. What, then, gentlemen of the com- 
mittee, would not Ireland free accomplish for the world's greatness? 

Gentlemen of the committee, as I look into your faces I feel that 
there is not one among you who will fail to vote favorably on this 
resolution, so that it may come before the great body of lawmakers 
of this country of ours. 

ADDITIONAL STATEMENT OF HON. JOSEPH McLATJGHLIN, A REP- 
RESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF PENNSYL- 
VANIA. 

Mr. McLaughlin. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee : 
For this early opportunity to say a word in support of the resolution 
offered by me in the House of Representatives, on December 2, 1918, 
on the right of Ireland to self-determination, permit me to tender my 
most sincere thanks. 

Though I have had the experience one derives from living in a 
country that is governed by another country without the former 
country's consent, I shall leave the. details to be presented by some 
one of the other speakers -who will address your honorable body on 
this subject. 

Asking for self-determination for Ireland does not make us any 
less Americans. We Americans of Irish lienage are away from Ire- 
land — away forever — our interest being based on the justice of her 
cause and in the love we and our children have for her. Our Ameri- 
canism can not be consistently challenged, for all true Americans are 
friends of freedom, and can not advocate freedom for all the world 
and ignore Ireland. It is a fact, indeed, that were Ireland free to- 
morrow, we, citizens of Irish blood, would continue to make our 
homes here in America. 

Impoverished and misruled, Ireland offers no field for either fame 
or fortune. It has been truthfully said that Ireland is a fruitful 
mother of genius but a barren nurse. England appropriates to her- 
self the fame of Ireland's most gifted sons. " She has gathered 
brilliant Irishmen as she would have gathered diamonds m Irish 
fields." In the eighteenth century she closed the schools, made the 
teacher a felon, and afterwards charged the people with ignorance. 

Do you wonder, gentlemen, that Ireland longs and prays and hopes 
for the right of determining how her sons shall manage the govern- 
ment of their own country ? It is certainly no more than England 
would demand if the cases were reversed. I recall that Mr. Froude, 
an English historian of the last century, on being asked, "What 
England would do if Ireland treated her as she treated Ireland?" 
replied : " Oh, England would get out of it somehow." Of course, 
she would, and she would be justified in doing so, and so is Ireland 



36 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

justified in endeavoring to get out of England's clutches, and until 
she does, the world will not have been made safe for democracy. 

" No nation," said President Wilson, " must be forced under a sov- 
ereignty under which it does not wish to live." Ireland to-day is 
being forced under a sovereignty under which it does not wish to live, 
and in behalf of that country, I am here to ask that the "United States 
Congress, through your honorable body, urge President Wilson to 
include it among those nations for which he will demand at the peace 
conference the right of self-determination. 

The Irish Nation is one of the oldest in Europe. It possesses a his- 
tory reaching back to the earliest ages of civilization. Her soldiers 
have written their names on the records of many armies, and her 
statesmen have lent their intellects to the service of many nations. 
During our own Revolution no more potent voice was raised in favor 
of American liberty than that of Ireland's distinguished statesman 
of the day — Edmund Burke. 

The armies and navy of the Colonies contained a large percentage 
of men of Irish blood — in fact, in all our wars, on every page of our 
history, the heroism of the sons of Ireland flashes in eager service in 
everything that contributed to the power and glory of this great Re- 
public, these sons of Erin having gladly struck and died for the land 
that held their allegiance. In the late war, the war waged by our 
country for the vindication of the principles of democracy, citizens 
of Irish blood were among the first to give unquestioned loyalty to 
authority. 

Ireland was made a nation by Almighty God. She is the real 
mother of Parliaments. She was old when Christianity exiled the 
Druids from their sacrificial forests. Her commerce was known 
throughout the then known world. Her military fame was equally 
celebrated. Her soldiers trampled down the Roman fortifications 
and were ascending the Alps when lightning struck down their 
daring leader. The English yoke is naturally galling to them. 

England's blighting rule has done more than impoverish the peo- 
ple of Ireland. She frowned the name of Ireland out of Goldsmith's 
" Deserted Village " — made her own of Tom Moore — starved Ed- 
mund Burke into giving her the matchless service of his life — hid 
away the distinguished grandson of Richard Brinsley Sheridan un- 
der the title of Lord Dufferin — disguised the brilliant Henry Temple 
as Lord Palmerston, and, among thousands of others, transformed 
Margaret Power into the Countess of Blessington. When the con- 
queror tells us that " all the good and great and illustrious that we 
produce are his, and that all the evil and passionate and worthless 
that w'e produce are ours," we experience the bitterest pang of con- 
quest. This was the spirit that took from Ireland the honor and 
profit of thousands of Irish men and Irish women who have Avon 
distinction in letters, law, science, war, and statesmanship. 

If Ireland be given the right of self-determination — given the 
right to work out her own salvation in her own way and to develop 
her powers and resources — her men and women of genius will not 
have to seek other fields for the employment and development of 
their talents — these fields will be found at home, and the great- 
ness of the country will be correspondingly enriched. England can 
starve and oppress Ireland, but she can neither conquer nor annihilate 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 37 

her. She can sweep millions of the Irish people out of the country 
and fill it with other races, but even then the latent life in the soil, 
the traditions, the sacrifices, the buried patriotism would come out 
and be breathed into the blood of the newcomers, until, in a genera- 
tion or two, they would be as strong Irish (those that were not 
enjoying some special privileges) in their sentiments and aspirations 
as the original Irish Celt. 

Neither Sarsfield nor Emmet, two of Ireland's most idolized 
patriots, were of the ancient race, and a reading of a list of the 
latest victims of English misrule will reveal names of men not of 
Irish origin, yet men who proved they were "more Irish than the 
Irish themselves." 

We wish to see Ireland take her place among the nations of the 
earth. It is not a selfish ambition, and we, consequently, gentlemen, 
count on your powerful assistance ; we wish to see her made a coun- 
try in which her sons and daughters may win coronets more precious 
than ever conferred on either king or kaiser — coronets awarded be- 
cause of intellectual eminence. 

We desire that Ireland's claim to a place at the peace conference 
be heeded, and it is my firm conviction that Ireland, blessed with 
the right of self-determination, the name of our great President will 
be breathed as a benediction by millions now living and millions yet 
unborn for his championship of the rights of small nations. 

In the late war, the war waged by our country for the vindication 
of the principles of democracj^, citizens of Irish blood were among 
the first to give unquestioned loyalty to authority. As national presi- 
dent of the Ancient Order of Hibernians of America, the representa- 
tive organization of the Irish race in this continent, on February 5, 
1917, two months before the declaration of war, I telegraphed Presi- 
dent Wilson from Philadelphia " the unswerving loyalty of 250,000 
Hibernians in America in any conflict that might arise between this 
and any nation in the world." The President's reply, sent on the 
following day, read : 

Your generous message of February 5, pledging the administration the un- 
swerving loyalty of 250,000 members of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, is 
very heartening to me, and I thank you and them for this inspiring reassur- 
ance." 

How well that pledge was fulfilled was seen even in those trying 
days which preceded the processes incident to the application of con- 
scription, the voluntary enlistment of citizens of Irish blood, proving 
their eagerness to serve and defend the Nation. The pledge was ful- 
filled in all the various war efforts of the fraternity and the race — 
efforts on the enumeration of which it is now needless to dwell. 

On war being declared, the National Hibernian, the official organ 
of the Ancient Order of Hibernians in America, said editorially : 

There comes a time in the life of nations, as of individuals, when the issue is 
life or death, honor or shame. Such a time now exists. Old prejudices, old 
suspicions, ancient wrongs, and memories of injustice and the traditions of 
defeat are swept away in the supreme test of loyalty to the institutions of the 
great Republic. The conditions which now confront the Nation are not to be 
changed by words; they can only be ruled by the sword. The opinions of citi- 
zens are puerile; the fiat of the Government at Washington is vital. There is 
now but one law — instant and unquestioning obedience to the voice of authority. 
The man who quibbles is a fool ; the man who hesitates is a coward ; the man 
who defies is a traitor. 



38 THE IEISH QUESTION". 

The casualty lists proved beyond all doubt the whole-heated Irish 
participation in the war which followed this call to arms. In their 
enthusiasm citizens of Irish blood swept over all barriers of remem- 
bered wrong to sustain America's declaration to make the world safe 
for democracy. The Irish race in America has never remained aloof 
from any of the responsibilities of citizenship. It has ever sought its 
burdens and borne them with honor and with a loyal determination 
to justify the reputation of its sons for patriotism, they being Ameri- 
cans from the moment their feet touch American soil. Our race 
stood beside the cradle of America. Irish soldiers followed Mont- 
gomery to Quebec; charged with Moylan; struggled over the wall at 
Bennington with Stark; crowded through the gates of Stony Point 
with Mad Anthony Wayne; rushed with Gen. Hand at Brandywine 
Springs; and, charged with Fitzgerald at Monmouth. They climbed 
over I he sides of hostile ships with Jack Barry, father of the Ameri- 
can Navy; wore with Jeremiah O'Brien when he fought the first sea 
fight of the Revolution; and with Gen. Sullivan when he fought the 
first land battle; and were in the Mexican War with Shields and 
Kearney. They charged with Meagher at Marys Heights; with 
Sheridan when he snatched victory from the jaws of defeat at Win- 
chester; stood in the breach at Gettysburg; died in the swamps of 
Chickahominy ; and fell like wheat before the. reaper on the. sides of 
Malvern Hill. They stood on every field from Balls Bluff to Appo- 
matox, wearing the grey under the dauntless Pat Cleburne as proudly 
as they wore the blue under the gallant Phil Sheridan. They fought 
in the late war — the war for democracy— with the old spirit, with the 
spirit that has breathed through their history for a hundred genera- 
tions of Saints and scholars and soldiers; that spirit which lives 
triumphant after armies have been destroyed — the immortal spirit of 
human liberty which survives all its champions. 

Centuries before the Congress of the United States declared 
war for the freedom of small nations, countless millions of the Irish 
race had registered a vow to live and die for the freedom of their own 
small nation. When this Government chose the path of war and an- 
nounced to the world that the sword would not be sheathed until the 
world was made safe for democracy — until all the small nations of 
Europe were accorded the right of self-determination — the right of 
determining for themselves, by a majority vote, under what form of 
government they would live — can you wonder that the sons and 
daughters of Erin in every land are thrilled with the prospect of a 
free Ireland? 

At the peace conference they will look to President Wilson, repre- 
senting the most powerful of the free nations of the world, to demand 
that the chain which has so long fettered the aspirations of their 
race shall be broken, and they look hopefully to this Committee on 
Foreign Affairs of the Congress of the United States to encourage 
and sustain him in that demand, to the extent of reporting favorably 
to the House of Representatives the resolution introduced by me 
requesting that Ireland be granted the right of self-determination. 

No force is more potent in the destiny of a race or a nation than 
its ideals. The similarity of the ideals of America and Ireland are 
striking. The people of both nations have followed freedom as a 
beacon through the clouds of war and the mists of peace. The Irish 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 39 

people and the people of America have fixed their faith upon the 
rights of men to life, liberty, and happiness. 

In conclusion, gentlemen, I appeal for your favorable action on 
this resolution — appeal to your high sense of justice and real Ameri- 
canism — that the call of Ireland may be answered — that she may 
enjoy the realization of a deathless ideal — Ireland a nation! 

STATEMENT OF MR. JOHN A. MURPHY, OF BUFFALO, N. Y. 

Mr. Murphy. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, J. 
represent, in a general way, the business aspect of the city of Buffalo. 
I have for 30 years been in business there. At a recent meeting of 
the Chamber of Commerce of Buffalo one of the most enthusiastic 
statements was received by the membership of that organization in 
regard to self-determination for Ireland. That organization, as a 
pure business organization of the city of Buffalo, manifested beyond 
a shadow of a doubt that the business heart, the professional heart 
of the average American citizen, regardless of his blood or descent, 
is unquestionably in favor of the intervention by the United States 
on the question of Irish self-determination. 

If our own great President desired any limitations upon the appli- 
cation of that principle which he has enunciated, both on our entrance 
into the war and on the 14 points upon which he has said to the 
world peace shall be declared, he would have said so. He said what 
he meant, and he meant what he said. 

The only premises upon which the application of those principles 
can possibly be argued or denied is on the ground that Ireland is not 
a nation. He has unqualifiedly spoken for all nations. If, gentle- 
men, the objections we hear raised were to be raised at any time that 
the relation between England and Ireland is a domestic question and 
not an international one, then was the time for that question to have 
been raised. 

The Chairman. When we entered the war? 

Mr. Murphy. When we entered the war and when our cobelliger- 
ents accepted our aid, when our declaration of principles was made 
for the purpose of winning the war, upon those grounds our aid was 
then accepted. Then the words of our President were accepted, at 
least tacitly, by the world, and the aid we gave and the help we sent 
in men, money, and in munitions justify us in insisting that his dec- 
larations be now applied in their entirety. I have a son over there, 
and he went when the President called him, or he would be no son 
of mine. 

My point is that Europe, inviting us to participate, and we accept- 
ing their invitation, having set forth the terms upon which we were 
entering the war, that if England or any other nation desired to 
raise objection to our terms, that was the time to raise the objections 
or forever after hold their peace. 

Mr. Goodwin. And they are now estopped ? 

Mr. Murphy. And they are now estopped. I am not a lawyer, but 
I know what that term means. 

Now, the question is, Is Ireland a nation? I will take you to the 
English statute books to prove it. 

In 1782 what is known as Grattan's statute was enacted. Grattan 
was assisted in securing its enactment by that illustrious namesake 



40 THE IEISH QUESTION. 

of the chairman of this committee, Flood, and they placed upon the 
statute books of the English Parliament a law which was in brief a 
declaration by the English Parliament that no power or authority 
was to be exercised over the people of Ireland except their own power 
and authority, and that nobody but the people themselves had the 
power to bind the people of Ireland. 

For a period of 18 years following the passage of that act Ireland 
was comparatively free. It is true the same King occupied the two 
thrones, but they were economically and politically apart. During 
that period of 18 years of limited suffrage I venture to say that no 
other country of Europe showed like period of prosperity and 
absence of turmoil and trouble. 

The Chairman. Do you recall to what extent the population in- 
creased at that time? 

Mr. Murphy. Not alone the population increased but the indus- 
tries and wealth of the country were greatly enhanced under the 
Grattan-Flood Parliament, but I have not the exact figures here. 

Mr. Porter. I would suggest if they have census reports of Ireland 
we would like to have them filed. 

Mr. Murphy. We have some statistics of Irish population here. 
I now wish to take up another point in reference to this question, 
Mr. Chairman. It was my fortune to visit Ireland two years ago as 
a member of the American relief commission for Ireland, of which 
the three cardinals were honorary presidents, and made the arrange- 
ments by which over $200,000 were sent from America to relieve the 
widows and orphans and suffering and hunger and want that existed 
by reason of the rebellion in Ireland during Easter week, 1916. 

I found that Ireland is as firmly held under martial law as Bel- 
gium had ever been held. I drove with Sir John Maxwell and his 
chief of staff through Phoenix Park, Dublin, and Sir John Maxwell 
said to me, " Outside of the sedition Ireland is practically crimeless." 
Those are his words; that outside of sedition — that was his defini- 
tion of the uprising — that Ireland was practically crimeless. 

Then we saw the streets of Dublin. It occupied a week. There 
were 30 blocks in the heart of the city which were leveled by in- 
cendiary shells and something over $30,000,000 of damage inflicted 
upon the civil population. 

The Chairman. Is it not a fact that the number of volunteers from 
Ireland, in comparison to population, compares very favorably with 
the number from Scotland? 

Mr. Murphy. This is the history of the war in Ireland, that for 
the first six months of the war Earl Grey said in all the terrible busi- 
ness Ireland was the one bright spot. The devastation of Belgium 
appealed to the Irish, as a matter of sympathy, in a most extraordi- 
nary manner. The volunteering in Ireland at that time was greater 
than in England for a certain period. Then home rule, instead of 
being put into law, and the good faith of England having been 
pledged to its fulfillment, was pigeonholed and indefinitely post- 
poned. That is what Mr. Lloyd-George then termed a piece of 
"malignant stupidity," and nothing but malingnant stupidity could 
have so changed the heart of Ireland from what it was at the out- 
set of the war. 

Really, ''malignant stupidity" is a fair and honest description of 
the dealings of England with Ireland, because any other nation on 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 41 

earth would have found comfort and support in a sister isle, after all 
this period, if it had been managed in any other way than with ma- 
lignant stupidity. 

Now, I think one of the questions that is occupying your minds is 
the right or propriety of our entering into the question as an outside 
nation. I have endeavored to show that anybody is estopped from 
objection on that ground. I have endeavored to show that Ireland 
is a nation, and I am not going to take your time to prove that. Its 
history, its people, its art, its literature, and language have all shown 
that. 

Among the handicaps to-day on Irish industries are : 

(1) The unparalleled conditions of the Irish railways, controlled 
by boards of English directors, with freight rates that prohibit all 
successul competition. 

(2) Unfavorable conditions imposed by Irish bankers, who are con- 
trolled by the Bank of England. 

(3) Through the practical closing of Irish ports and gradual ab- 
sorption of the Irish merchant marine Ireland is compelled to export 
through English middle men. 

(4) The consequent dependence of marineless Ireland upon Eng- 
land for the raw material necessary for manufacturers. 

(5) The excessive price of coal in Ireland, because the English- 
controlled railways in Ireland have consistently refused to build spur 
lines to Irish coal mines, and the Irish manufacturer is compelled to 
buy Welsh coal. 

(6) The deliberate policy of both political parties in England to 
prevent the industrial development in Ireland, a policy which Arthur 
Chamberlain condemned in Dublin in 1896. (See statement of Ar- 
thur Chamberlain to Arthur Griffith in Dublin, July, 1907; Nation- 
ality, July 31, 1915, Miss Hughes's remarks, p. 75.) 

(7) English buyers mainly demand Ireland's cattle on the hoof. 
There are some 12,000,000 acres of grazing land in the country, on 
which only the young cattle are raised and shipped across the channel 
to England, where they are fattened and then killed and dressed in 
English abattoirs and sold back to the Irish people as " English prime 
beef." The English middle men in this way cause a loss to Ireland of 
some $5 per animal, as well as the valuable by-products, and the Irish 
land suffers from the loss of the manure. There are few large cattle 
slaughterhouses in Ireland. 

Living for 21 years in Ireland, and having visited it so many times 
since I left there, having been in many of the counties of Ireland more 
than once, and having been in all of them at least once, and having 
a larger acquaintance through the length and breadth of Ireland than 
almost any man who has visited there, I want to say to you, Mr. 
Chairman and gentlemen, that the Ulster question is a myth; it is a 
straw man set up to perpetrate an injustice. 

I wish I could read to you the official proclamation of the Irish 
Republic on Easter Monday, 1916. It was without malice and hate, 
and without religious animosity of any sort or character. 

It seems to me almost incumbent upon the Congress of the United 
States to maintain the honor and dignity and prestige of the Presi- 
dent. He has a long vision; seeing beyond to-day and to-morrow, 



42 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

and he sees that there is being offered to Europe a new thought and 
a new right, and through him I hope, sir, and believe, the world will 
have achieved emancipation and freedom that might be likened even 
to the freedom of the world that was born at the crucifixion, "2,000 
year- ago. 

Mr. Ragsdale. The chairman asked you as to the relative number 
of men who went into the army from Ireland, Scotland, and Eng- 
land. Have you the figures? That is, the relative number of men 
who served as volunteers in this war? 

Mr. Murphy. While I was there in July, of 1916. I was informed 
that up to that period 170.000 had joined the colors in Ireland from 
the entrance into the war up to the time of the revolution. This 
was in addition to the number of Irishmen in the regular army of 
England prior to the war. 

Mr. Goodwin, (hie hundred and seventy thousand? 

Mr. Murphy. Yes. 

Mr. Porter. Does that exclude the Irish in Scotland and Wales? 

Mr. Murphy. Yes, sir; it is just the Irish from Ireland. 

Mr. Porter. Have you an estimate as to that number? 

Judge Scanlan. The report of Lord Wimborne to Kitchener, in 
July, 1910. showed that there were Irishmen in the regular army in 
1916, 51,046, including those in the regular-army reserve; that the 
Irish enlistments to 1916 were 170,000; that the Irishmen in English 
and Scotch regiments numbered over 35,000; that the Irishmen in 
the navy 8,456, with 7.000 later recruits, making a total of Irishmen 
in the army and navy of over 271,592. Then there were in the naval 
reserves over 4.000. which made a grand total of over 275,592. 

Mrs. B. J. Mahoney, Mr, Redmond demanded on the floor of the 
House of Commons to know how many Irishmen had volunteered 
during 1916, and the figures given were 170.000 from Ireland. 

On a careful estimation it is evident that Irishmen in the British 
forces, including those from Canada. Australia. South Africa. New 
Zealand. England, Scotland, and Wales, totaled more than 500,000. 

Judge ^pANLAN. It was stated in the British Parliament a year 
after the war began that Ireland had shamed England in the matter 
of volunteering for the army. 

The Chairman. As I understand it, the population able to bear 
arms was 778,631, and there were in the regular army and of those 
who volunteered and in the Navy 275,000. 

Mr. Murphy. Yes; and that the casualty rate was greater among 
them than any other arm of the British service. 

Mr. Chairman, having interviewed a large number of men in Ire- 
land both before and after the Irish uprising I found no hatred of 
England in Ireland. I found no pro-Germanism. I found nothing 
that would not permit Irishmen to live in harmony and peace with 
Englishmen; all they wanted was to control their own destiny. 

Mr. Porter. Is there any embargo on the shipment of manufac- 
tured goods from Ireland to the ports of France and England J 

Mr. Murphy. You can not ship them, there direct. Xo line is 
drawn, but you can not ship if you have not the connections and if 
your banker is tied by a contract from your London house. There 
is no law on the statute books against it, but there is something more 
potent than law. 



THE IBISH QUESTION. 43 

Mr. Porter. Does this something more potent than law prevent 
Ireland from shipping manufactured goods directly to America? 

Mr. Murphy. Yes, sir. 

Mr. Eagsdale. You maintain that the control of English shipping 
makes it impossible for the Irish manufacturer to find any markets 
abroad? 

Mr. Murphy. The fact that the Irish manufacturer must ship 
through England militates in various ways against the successful 
competition of Irish goods in foreign markets. 

STATEMENT OF MR. PADRAIC COLTJM, REPRESENTING THE IRISH 
PROGRESSIVE LEAGUE OF NEW YORK. 

Mr. Colum. Mr. Chairman, I represent the Irish Progressive 
League of New York, and desire to reply to an inquiry that one of 
your members asked of us this morning. The inquiry was, How 
would a separate Ireland organize itself. I think you also had in 
mind what relations a separate Ireland would have to the minority, 
and with England, and I am here to reply briefly to that inquiry. 

I think you also had in mind that Ireland was very small and 
very poor, and could not maintain a separate existence. I would 
like to show you a comparison between Ireland and other small and 
independent nations in Europe. Denmark has an area of 15,338 
square miles ; Ireland has an area of 32,571 square miles. The normal 
revenue of Denmark in recent years was about $38,000,000, whereas 
the revenue raised in Ireland in 1917 was over $140,000,000. That 
is overtaxation, and the result of such overtaxation has produced the 
deepest sort of economic degradation in Ireland. 

Perhaps you will be surprised to learn that Ireland has the lowest 
marriage rate in Europe. The people in Ireland marry at a much 
later age than any people in Europe. 

As regards the organization of a separate Ireland, that organiza- 
tion would be republican, and the policy of that republican Ireland 
was announced in the proclamation of the Irish republic in Easter 
week, 1916. It guaranteed the freedom of religion, freedom from 
tests to every minority in Ireland, and it was promulgated at that 
time to give the franchise immediately to the women of the country. 
We would be perfectly willing that the minority in Ireland should 
have a local organization, to look after their economic interests, 
etc., provided, of course, that organization did not break up the 
unity of the country. 

Some gentlemen to-day asked as to the propriety of this country 
proposing that a cobelligerent of this country should dismember 
itself. You will remember, Mr. Chairman, that that proposition, if 
it is a proposition for dismemberment, has already been made by a 
great English party, the English labor party, when they declared 
that Ireland should be freed. If it is asking a cobelligerent of 
America to dismember herself, a great English party has already 
declared that that should be done. 

Mr. Chairman, I should like you to know of an announcement 
made by Prof. McNeill, one of the Sinn Fein leaders. He has said 
in an article in the English Keview that what is holding the world 



44 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

back is the ideas of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, which 
are now out of date the idea thai all States are sovereign and inde- 
pendent. The idea of the twentieth century must he that States are 
not independent, but are interdependent, that they are interdepend- 
ent upon each other just as individuals in society are interdependent, 
and that idea is the one which President 'Wilson advocates, and it is 
found to prevail all over the world. In a society of nations, inter- 
dependent, there need he no conflict between Ireland and England, 
'The republican organization in Ireland is exceedingly strong, 
The genera] election is scheduled for England and Ireland this 
week. Already the Irish Republic party of Ireland has won 25 
scuts absolutely uncontested; that is to say, one-quarter oi' the 
possible scats in Ireland are handed over without a contest to the 
Irish Republic party, which shows how strongly the Irish Republic 
party is organized in Ireland and with what loyalty the people of 
Ireland back that organization. It is very surprising that the organi- 
zation of the Irish Republic party is so strong, considering that all of 
the leaders of that organization, with one exception, Prof. McNeill, arc 

imprisoned and have been in prison since last May and will not b( 
given a trial, but will very likely be held in prison until after the 
genera] elections. 

Mr. Chairman, 1 would like to say also that a free Ireland will also 
mean that Great Britain would be freed from many of the perplexi- 
ties which sorely try her. The most unholy form of government in 
the world is the government of one country by another country. 
It is bad for both countries. Great Britain will be far more secure 
when she agrees to self determination for Ireland than she is at the 
present. At the moment Great Britain has a bad conscience about 
Ireland. She can not urge many measures, because the question 
would be asked, "What about Ireland?" 

We are asked how about this Irish minority in the matter of self- 
determination i The minority vote in other countries is much larger 
and better organized than the same sort of a minority in Ireland. 
In Bohemia there is a Large German population having all the in- 
dustries and all the high positions -that is completely against 
Czecho-Slovak self determination, ami yet the Bohemians are going 
to set up a separate organization, they are going to treat the minority 
well, just as we are going to treat our minority well. 

I thank von exceedingly, Mr. Chairman, for your patient hearing. 

Mr. Porter. Tan you tell us what percentage of the $140,000,000 
raised by taxes is expended in Ireland? 

Mr. CoLUM, It is very difficult to tell that, for this reason, that 
there is no separate Irish budget, but it is in the neighborhood of 
$50,000,000. 

Mr. KENNEDY. Did they not have a financial commission in L894 
which went into that question) 

Mr. (Via m. Yes. 

Mr. Kennedy. What was the conclusion of that committee? 

Mr, Com m. The conclusion was that Ireland had been overtaxed 
to the extent of $15,000,000 a year over and above what the committee 
considered Ireland's proper contribution to cover expenditures in 
Ireland and to the imperial exchequer. The inquiry went back for 
about 80 years. There have been no separate Irish accounts. One 



THK IRISH QUESTION. 45 

and one-half billion dollars now is owed by England to Ireland, for 
which they have never made a single cent <>f recompense since, 1818, 
and that docs not take into consideration the very Large amount Eng- 
land has gotten from Ireland since the beginning of this war. 

Mr. KENNEDY. Do you mean to say that a financial commission re- 
ported that England owes that amount to Ireland? 

Mi-. CoiaiM. Yes. The commission was ordered by Gladstone, and 
then, Gladstone having gone out of power, the succeeding govern- 
ment failed to carry out the recommendations of the commission. It 
is called the report of the Childera commission. 

Mr. Sabath. In what year was this report made? 

Mr. Colum. In 1894 and L895. 

The findings of the Royal commission on the financial relations 
between Great Britain and Ireland were: 

I. That Great Britain and Ireland must, for the purpose Ot this inquiry, be 
considered as separate entitles. 

II. That the act of union Imposed upon Ireland a burden which, as events 
showed, she was unable to bear. 

III. That the increase of taxation [aid upon Ireland between 1868 and 1860 
was not justified by the then existing circumstances. 

IV. That identity of rates of taxation does not necessarily Involve equality of 
burden. 

V. That, whilst the actual tax revenue of [reland is about one-eleventh of 
that of Great Britain, the relative taxable capacity of [reland is very much 
smaller and is not estimated by any of us as exceeding one-twentieth. 

Mr. Childers, the first chairman of the commission, in his report 
states, with regard to the statement in V of the findings: 

If the revenue derived from Ireland were in proportion to this relative capac- 
ity, it would be about two and three-fourths millions (pounds) a year less than, 
in consequence of the existing Incidence of taxation, it at present is. (Par. 291, 
Childers's report.) 

Extract from report by Mr. Sexton and others of the committee: 

The revenue actually raised in [reland during the period of the separate 

exchecquers and "contributed" sine., then (according to Treasury computa- 
tions) has amounted to about £570,000,000, or an average approximately of 
£6,000,000 a year, being double the amount stated as the (air proportion of 
Ireland in view of her relative capacity. 

These statements with regard to the overtaxation of Ireland were 
repeated in the separate report of the Hon. Edward Blake. M. P., 
the only native of North America who was a member of (lie com- 
mission. He further comments regarding the commission's estimate 
of Ireland's relative taxable capacity (one-twentieth) " * * * her 
relative capacity, which, as already indicated, we all agree is full, 
and which some of us think much too high." 

And, I may add, it was further borne out at this commission by 
the testimony of Mr. Lough, M. P., that this overtaxation in Ire- 
land was peculiarly onerous because it was mainly extracted from 
the poor wage-earning and agricultural classes rather than from 
the profits of industries as it had been in the prosperous period of 
Ireland's own Parliament under Grattan and Flood. 

Mr. Lough also proved by official figures that "whereas in Great 
Britain in the (past) 30 years pauperism has halved; in Ireland 
in the 30 years it has doubled." It was also brought out at the 
commission that Charles Booth, the noted English puhli'ist and 
statistician, decided after a complete survey of Irish returns up to 



46 THE IKISH QUESTION. 

1885 that " an absolute industrial decadence" had settled upon that 
unhappy land. 

Mr. Dolan. Mr. Chairman, I would also like to speak on this 
question, because I have made a study of Irish estimates. The rev- 
enue collected by England from Ireland in 1912 was $60,000,000. 
Ordinarily there was a margin of about $10,000,000 that went an- 
nually into the British treasury which was used for imperial pur- 
poses, and that $10,000,000 extra is in addition to about $15,000,000 
which the Childers Commission found that Ireland was overtaxed 
annually. Since the war the Irish revenue has been increased enor- 
mously because of additional taxes, so that this year the taxes raised 
in Ireland amount to $140,000,000, and of that sum about $60,000,000 
has been expended by England in governing Ireland and the balance 
has gone for imperial purposes. The Irish people hold that they 
could govern themselves on the present basis with an expenditure of 
$40,000,000 annually. 

Mr. Porter. That $60,000,000 does not include Ireland's propor- 
tionate share for the maintenance of the British army and navy? 

Mr. Dolan. No; that is according to the figures published by the 
British treasury officials. 

Mr. RagsdAle. What do you mean when you say that the Irish 
revenue has been largely increased ? 

Mr. Dolan. I mean the revenue collected by England from Ire- 
land in the shape of taxes. 

STATEMENT OF MR. THOMAS ROCK, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., REPRE- 
SENTING THE CENTRAL FEDERATED UNION OF NEW YORK. 

Mr. Rock. Mr. Chairman, I represent the Central Federated 
Union of New York, comprising a membership of 300,000. With 
your kind permission, I will read a resolution passed by that or- 
ganization on November 22, 1918. This resolution was passed by 
that body representing 300,000 working people, of all r^ices, of our 
cosmopolitan city. It will show you how the working people of the 
city of New York feel about the question of self-determination for 
Ireland. 

The resolution is as follows: 

We. the Central Federated Union of New York, the accredited representatives 
of the largest aggregation of organized labor in the United States, in regular 
meeting assembled, on November 22. 1918, hereby resolve: 

1. That we appeal to President Wilson, on the eve of his departure for 
France to take part in the forthcoming Peace Conference, to bring before that 
body the claim of Ireland to national independence and to demand for her 
people the right of self-determination, to which he has repeatedly declared 
that all peoples are entitled, and to secure which for the downtrodden popula- 
tions of the Old World he has proclaimed to be one of America's objects in the 
war. On the strength of this declaration the American people sent their sons 
into the Army and Navy and poured out their blood and treasure lavishly; 
and Irish citizens performed their full share in the fighting and the other 
sacrifices. 

2. Belgium, Serbia, and Roumania, whose territory was overrun and occu- 
pied by the forces of the central powers, have been cleared of the invader ; the 
Poles, Czecho-Slovaks, Jugo-Slavs, and Lithuanians have been liberated by the 
victorv of the United States and the allies over Germany and Austria, and the 
Ukraiiians by the collapse of the Russian Czardom ; Palestine, Syria, Armenia, 
and Arabia have been made free by England's victory over Turkey, and other long 
submerged peoples see the dawn of their freedom and a result of the breaking up 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 47 

of empires founded on conquest and spoliation. Ireland lias the same right to 
freedom as all these other countries and her people the same right to determine 
their own form of government. They have fought and struggled for it for many 
centuries and are now more united in the determination to secure it than at any 
time in the past 700 years. 

3. By all the tests recognized by the governments and peoples which have 
overthrown the German autocracy and which will be represented at the Peace 
Conference, Ireland has all the elements of nationhood. She has a homogeneous 
population, with capacity for government long recognized in the United States 
and the British colonies and amply demonstrated by the Irish Parliament during 
the short period of its independence, from 1782 to 1800. She has a separate 
and strongly marked geographical position, the finest harbors in Europe, and 
unrivaled water power; great natural resources, now undeveloped because of 
the greed of the capitalist classes who control the Government of England and 
who by prohibiting legislation, destroyed her once flourishing industries and 
crippled her economic life. This treatment has reduced the population of 
Ireland from S,500,000 in 1846 to 4,300,000 in 1918, a fact which clearly demon- 
strates the necessity of a complete change of government. 

4. But Ireland's chief claim to rule her own destinies rests on the natural 
rights of man and the wish of her people, expressed by every available means in 
the most unmistakable manner in every generation for several centuries. 
England's failure to govern Ireland well has been demonstrated with equal 
clearness and force during the same period. She holds Ireland down to-day by 
military force alone, by a reign of tyranny paralleled only in the Russia of 
the Czars. It violates every right of citizenship and fills the prisons with hun- 
dreds of men and women whom the government refuses to bring to trial for the 
self-evident reason that it has no evidence to prove the charges against them 
with which it has flooded the press of the civilized world. 

5. Aside from the moral obligation of applying to Ireland the right of self- 
determination to which our worthy President has declared that all peoples are 
entitled, there is an unanswerable material reason. It was the contribution of 
the United States in men, munitions, ships, food, and money which was the 
decisive factor in the final defeat of Germany. The freedom of Ireland, which 
would remove one of the incentives to future wars and help to insure the world's 
peace, would therefore be a small favor to ask of England, while France and 
Italy, who are under such tremendous obligations to this Republic, should be 
ready to join America in effecting an amicable and satisfactory settlement of a 
question that has troubled the world so long and will continue to disturb it if it 
is not now settled right. 

G. We have the strongest sympathy with the people of England, whose work- 
ers are now determined to secure their own rights and to win their proper share 
in the government of the country ; and we are fully convinced that the settle- 
ment of the Irish question in accordance with the wishes of the majority of the 
Irish people would be a lasting benefit to the English people as well as to the 
Irish. We are satisfied also that if President Wilson, at the peace conference, 
presses the demand which we respectfully recommend, he will receive the sup- 
port of our fellow workers in Great Britain, who have no interest in keeping 
Ireland down. 

These resolutions which I have just read were passed unanimously 
by a rising vote amid great applause of the delegates. 

The Central Labor Union of Philadelphia also passed a similar 
resolution, and the trades-unions of Ireland— there has been some men- 
tion made of the religious question— the Trade-Union Congress of 
Ireland has made a demand for self-determination and freedom for 
Ireland, and a great majority of the members of the Trade-Union 
Congress of Ireland are Catholics, while the president of the organi- 
zation is a Protestant by the name of Johnson. 

Several of the speakers have touched on the economic question. I 
want to mention something that happened about five years ago. 

The White Star Line and the Cunard Line, having by order of the 
British Government abandoned Queenstown as a port of call, the 
Hamburg- American Line advertised bookings for Queenstown, and 



48 THE IBISH QUESTION. 

the German Government was notified by England that if any of the 
German lines of steamers made Queenstown a port of call that would 
be looked upon as an unfriendly act, and the German Government 
immediately notified the Hamburg- American line to cancel all their 
bookings for Queenstown. At this same period the Hamburg- Ameri- 
can Line was calling regularly at the English ports of Southampton 
and Plymouth. 

On behalf of the labor unions of New York I appeal to this com- 
mittee to report favorably the Gallagher resolution, which has been 
spoken on here to-day and this evening. 

Organized labor is a unit in favor of self-determination and 
freedom for Ireland. 

I assume there are Republicans on this committee. I am one my- 
self. I saw in one of the papers where some of our organizations 
are passing resolutions in favor of self-determination for Ireland, 
and the governor of the State of New York, Gov. Whitman, was one 
of the principal speakers at the Madison Square meeting last Tues- 
day night. 

This is not a one-sided affair, Mr. Chairman. The entire citizen- 
ship is in favor of self-determination for Ireland. 

Mr. Rogers. Mr. Chairman, I desire to present to the committee 
for insertion into the record a copy of resolutions adopted at the 
mass meeting of the citizens of Lowell, Mass., December 8, 1918, as 
follows : 

The United Irish Societies of Lowell, Mass., in a mass meeting assembled for 
the purpose of giving expression to their views as American citizens upon the 
application to Ireland of the principles of President Wilson for the " Rights 
of small nations" at the coming Peace Conference, and as Ireland is one of 
the small nations and has struggled for her independence for over 700 years 
and never admitted the right of any country to rule over her — has heen held 
under an alien government against her will — and while her sons have in the war 
just ended shed their blood for the freedom of small nations and to make the 
world safe for Democracy — fighting under different flags, and under none more 
proudly than under the flag of our beloved United States, which was the 
decidiiig factor in winning and ending The war: Therefore be it 

Resolved, That we as American citizens and lovers of liberty for all the 
peoples of the world respectfully ask the committee on Foreign Relations of 
Congress to act on the several petitions now in the hands of the committee on 
Foreign Relations, asking that the case of Ireland be presented to the coming 
Peace Conference, and that Ireland's case be given the same place at that 
Conference with that of Poland, Serbia, and the other small nations for self- 
determination as to the form of government under which they shall live ; and 
that they shall not be forced to live under a Government not of their own 
choice : And be it further 

Resolved, That we fully indorse the principles laid down by President Wilson 
for the self-determination of small nations, which if not carried out the war 
will have been fought in vain and the world will not be made safe for democ- 
racy : And be it further 

Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be sent to the Committee on For- 
eign Relations of Congress, and to our Congressman from this district, and to 
our senior Senator from Massachusetts. 

Michael J. Monahan. 

Michael J. Sharkey. 

James O'Sullivan. 

John Barrett. 

Francis Kearse. 

John J. Kenney. 

John McEnernet. 

Patrick .1. Mahoney. 

Philip J. Harley. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 49 

The Chairman. How many more speakers have you? 

Mr. Gorman. Four more. 

The Chairman. It is getting a little late and some of the members 
of the committee think we ought to adjourn unless we can finish quite 
soon. 

Mr. Gorman. I do not think it will take long to finish these four, 
but, of course, if we are to hear all of the speakers who would like 
to be heard it would consume two hours more. 

The Chairman. We will continue a little longer to-night. You 
may present your next speaker. 

Mr. Gorman. I will call Mr. Coyne. 

STATEMENT OF MR. THOMAS COYNE, REPRESENTING THE 
TEAMSTERS OF ST. LOUIS, MO. 

The Chairman. You may proceed, Mr. Coyne. 

Mr. Coyne. I represent an organization of teamsters which in- 
cludes in its membership in the neighborhood of 7,000 men of St. 
Louis. 

I also speak as a member of the Central Trades and Labor Union, 
which union has not been able to hold a meeting to indorse the propo- 
sition that is confronting us to-day, but I speak on behalf of them, 
that we are for the freedom of Ireland. We are for the freedom of 
all nations. 

If we are going to have peace, let us have a real peace. When we 
look back at the 700 years of sorrow and strife in the land from which 
many Irishmen and Irish women came to these shores, and from 
which the forefathers of others born here came to this land, we feel 
that the critical moment is here. 

You gentlemen can help us. 

We are all here to try to help you. 

And, for God's sake, and for the sake of labor, which is fighting 
desperately every day for freedom, we ask you in the interest of all 
peoples that are crying for freedom, let us have an everlasting peace. 
I thank you. 

Mr. Gorman. There are three others on this list, besides many 
others who would like to be heard. There are some Members of the 
Congress who would like to be heard to-night, and in order to give 
them the opportunity perhaps the other speakers may be reserved 
until morning. 

The Chairman. The Members of Congress could be heard in the 
future, for they are here in Washington, and it would not incon- 
venience them to be heard later, I take it. 

Mr. Gorman. I understand that some of them would prefer to be 
heard to-night on account of other engagements which might prevent 
their appearance at another time. 

Mr. Eagan. I have got to be at a meeting of the Committee on Ap- 
propriations in the morning, and I will only take about three minutes 
if I can get the opportunity to be heard to-night. 

The Chairman. The committee will be glad to hear Mr. Eagan. 
H. Doc. 1832, 65-3 i 



50 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN J. EAGAN, A REPRESENTATIVE IN 
THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES FROM THE STATE OF 
NEW JERSEY. 

Mr. Eagan. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, I 
can not take the time I should like to take on a matter of such great 
importance as this resolution. I shall take occasion, on the floor of 
the House, to go into the matter fully. But here to-night I want to 
summon as a witness in answer to any objection that may be raised 
as to the indelicate position we may get into, internationally or diplo- 
matically, in adopting the proposed resolution, if there is any such 
danger — and I do not think there is — a gentleman whose position 
on the subject of the rights of small nations has been made known 
to the world in a way that has never been equaled. The gentleman 
to whom I refer wili land to-mvorrow morning at Brest, in France, 
from which port Count Arthur Dillon and 2,300 Irish soldiers sailed 
for America prior to the time that Lafayette and his gallant troops — 
many of whom, by the way, were Irishmen — left to help achieve in- 
dependence for the American Colonies. I am going to summon as 
my witness our great President, Woodrow Wilson. [Applause.] 
In his speech delivered in New York, on September 27, at the Metro- 
politan Opera House, in opening the fourth Liberty loan campaign, 
he propounded these inquiries: 

Shall the military power of any nation or group of nations be suffered to 
determine the fortunes of peoples over whom they have no right to rule except 
the right of force? 

Shall strong nations be free to wrong weak nations and make them subject 
to their purpose and interest? 

Shall peoples be ruled and dominated, even in their own internal affairs, by 
arbitrary and irresponsible force or by their own will and choice? 

Shall there be a common standard of right and privilege for all peoples and 
nations or shall the strong do as they will and the weak suffer without redress? 

Shall the assertion of right be haphazard and by casual alliance, or shall 
there be a common concert to oblige the observance of common rights? 

No man, no group of men, chose these to be the issues of the struggle. They 
are the issues of it; and they must be settled — by no arrangement or com- 
promise or adjustment of interests, but definitely and once for all and with a 
full and unequivocal acceptance of the principle that the interest of the weakest 
is as sacred as the interest of the strongest. 

I respectfully submit, Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the com- 
mittee, that it is the profound conviction of the people of this great 
Republic that the nations that have been associated with us in the 
conduct of the great war will not seek to impose a rule of conduct 
on the vanquished central powers and their allies that they will 
refuse to adhere to themselves. The subject peoples of Germany, 
Austria-Hungary, and Turkey will be permitted — and should be per- 
mitted — to determine for themselves the precise form of government 
under which they shall live. The Poles, the Czecho-Slovaks, the 
Jugo- Slavs, the Armenians, and other peoples, long held in subjec- 
tion, will, and should, be organized along governmental lines of their 
own choosing. 

The Gallagher resolution simply asks that the peace commis- 
sioners representing the United States of America at the Versailles 
Conference be requested to urge upon that conference the right of 
the people of Ireland to determine for themselves the form of gov- 
ernment under which they desire to live — in a word, to apply to 
Ireland the principle on which our own Republic was founded, 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 51 

namely, that " all governments derive their just powers from the 
consent of the governed." 

Our country has always been quick to express its sympathy for 
peoples struggling for freedom, and for no other people has it felt 
and more frequently expressed a deeper sympathy than for the people 
of Ireland. There has never been a time when our sympathy for 
struggling nations will be more potent than it will be at the forth- 
coming peace conference. 

I am heartily in favor of the Gallagher resolution or any other 
resolution on similar lines which your committee may see fit to 
report to the House. 

Mr. Gorman. Mr. Phelan would like to be heard. 

The Chairman. The committee will be glad to hear Mr. Phelan. 

STATEMENT BY HON. M. F. PHEIAN, A REPRESENTATIVE IN 
THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES FROM THE STATE OF 
MASSACHUSETTS. 

Mr. Phelan. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, it 
was my intention to speak to-morrow rather than to-night, but the 
chairman has asked a question and nobody has answered it. I shall 
not attempt, coming unprepared, to answer that question by going 
fully into it; in fact, I should not attempt to answer that question 
in three or four minutes, which I suppose is all I will have, but I 
do want to have some comment made upon that question before this 
meeting closes to-night, and that is my reason for speaking here now. 

The chairman asks if there is any precedent. I will answer that, 
in what is perhaps a typical Irish way, by saying, No precedent is 
necessary. 

The Chairman. I did not ask if there was any precedent. If a 
proposition is right and its propriety clear we do not need a precedent 

to justify action. I 

m Mr. Phelan (interposing). I am not including your whole ques- 
tion, nor using your exact words, which I could not remember. But 
precedent is often the obstacle to progress. If we depended upon 
precedent President Wilson would not land in Europe to-morrow 
and be at the Peace Conference. If we had depended upon prece- 
dent the United States would not be represented at a peace table to 
settle affairs in Europe, not to mention the bigger world affairs. If 
we had depended upon precedent the United States would not be a 
cobelligerent, or ally, or whatever else you want to call our status, 
with European nations in the world war. But coming clown to prece- 
dent — and I am relying now upon a very hazy recollection, but I 
have the recollection that in times of peace the Congress has unhesi- 
tatingly indicated its sympathy with small nations seeking their 
independence, notably in the case of Greece. I might also make 
brief reference to Cuba. 

A Committeeman. Did not Congress also pass resolutions relat- 
ing to the Jewish condition in Russia? 

Mr. Phelan. Yes; we did. And we abrogated our treaty with 
Russia on account of that situation. That is all bearing on that 
same point. 

But to get down to the meat of this question; here is the ques- 
tion I ask every member of this committee to propound to himself 



52 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

before he reaches a final conclusion as to how he is going to vote 
on (his resolution [H. J. Res. 857]. I want him to say to himself. 
Suppose the American people want the claims of Ireland to be pre- 
sented at the Peace Conference, how are they to be presented 1 Will 
you answer me that the members of the Peace Conference them- 
selves will voluntarily take up this question? If you do, 1 will say 
to you in reply, with all the respect 1 have for the peaee conferees 
from this country, that the Congress of the United States, elected 
by the votes of the people of the nation, is a higher and better au- 
thority to speak for the American people than any peaee conferees 
except the President himself sent from this country on that particu- 
lar question. [ Applause. 1 At least we have an equal right, and it 
comes well within our province to express our opinion if we sec lit 
to do it. 

I want this committee to consider another thing in this same con- 
nection. 1 want them, before determining how they arc going to 
vote, or, 1 ask them respectfully before they determine how to vote. 
to answer another question; not to me but to themselves: Suppose 
Ireland instead of being located out in the sea- were located in cen- 
tral Europe, in the midst oi Germany or Austria or Bulgaria or 
Turkey. Suppose her history were similar to what it is: that condi- 
tions in that country were similar, with similar people occupying 
her territory; similar in every respect ami in every condition, includ- 
ing her internal conditions, and including her relations with the 
power dominating her. is there any member of this committee, is 
there any liberty-loving American in this whole land id' ours, who 
would hesitate one second on Ireland's cause and say other than 
that Ireland ought to have the right o( -elf determination, as to 
Germany, Austria, Bulgaria or Turkey? Is there one? Remember 
that when we say Poland ought to be tree we are not saying it with 
the idea of vengence. We are not saying it with the idea of handi- 
capping or punishing any one of the central powers. We say Poland 
should be free because it is just that Poland should be free. We are 
judging that case. America is not now at the peace table to punish 
even our enemies. We are there to establish justice in the world. 
And. as 1 say, in passing upon Poland it is simply and absolutely 
a question oi justice. 

Why should Ireland's cause be determined on any different basis? 
Assuming the justice of Ireland's claims— and there has been abun- 
dant and positive evidence introduced on it to-night without me 
introducing any more we come then down to this question: Shall 
the United States of America, or shall its people, or shall its repre- 
sentatives in the Congress, take the position that Ireland, as a part 
of a country in central Europe having a just claim, should have us 
defend that claim, but that Ireland should be denied the right of 
having us say one word in her behalf because it happens that she is 
subordinate to and dominated by one o{' our cobelligerents? 

Do you want testimony on that position? My friends. President 
Wilson made a remarkable statement, considering the time when he 
made it, in New York City, in a speech he made there some few 
weeks ago, in which he said something like this: 1 may forget the 
exact words, but he said, "We nin-t be just not only with those with 
whom we wish to be just, but we must also be just with those with 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 53 

whom we do not want to be just." Borrowing from his idea, and 
adding, perhaps, what would be a corollary, I submit to the mem- 
bers of this committee that in pa sing judgment upon this cause we 
must pass judgment with a view to justice not only to the small 
nations and the small peoples who are asking for sell-determination 
among our enemies, but also we must treat with justice those small 
people and those small nations who are seeking self-determination 
among our friends. 

And with that statement, my friends, I close. [Applause.] 

Mr. Gorman. Congressman Donovan would like to he heard. 

The Chairman. The committee will be glad to hear Mr. Donovan. 

STATEMENT BY HON. J. F. DONOVAN, A REPRESENTATIVE IN THE 
CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES FROM THE STATE OF NEW 
YORK. 

Mr. Donovan. After the very able summary by Mr. Phelan it ill 
becomes me to say anything, for it would be so much like attempting 
to paint the lily. But as a New England Yankee, born in that 
State whence to-morrow, I understand, will come somebody in op] po- 
sition to your adopting this resolution, I want to say. as a son born 
in that prejudiced city of New Haven, where up until the adoption of 
the Federal Constitution, state and church were joined together, and 
where no one could hold office except he be a Congregational min- 
ister, for no other creed was recognized, I repeat that whomever or of 
whatever type may be he who is coming to-morrow, I want you to 
put me up against him as being born there, and to say that my 
Americanism is above his, because I believe in worldwide democracy. 

It is not necessary for me to dilate on the reason or the occasion 
why this resolution should be adopted. That is elementary, gentle- 
men of the committee. The exposition of the speakers here ? if there 
was any doubt, has convinced you. And you are all thinking men. 
You are Americans, and you are in the great acceptance of the 
term Democrats — Democrats for the entire world, and at this time 
it is most appropriate that this matter should be discussed and con- 
sidered. 

Now, the question before you for consideration is, whether or not 
you should adopt this resolution, and whether it can be put through 
on its passage, and what is the purport of it if you do adopt it. I 
think this, my friends, that you are going to stiffen those men at that 
Peace Conference and at the peace table. They are the same as 
yourselves — Americans to the core; liberty loving men. They were 
taught and breathed in from their school books, as T certainly did, in 
New England, of the Boston massacre, and of the Tories, and so 
forth. You all know, and will admit with a certain feeling, that 
England often with us was sharp in her dealings. But we set that 
aside, and so did you all, for the war in the interest of humanity. 
And now we are met to carry out the principle for which we con- 
tended. And here is this isle, the home of my forbears, and I believe 
you, as American men, and the nation in general, desire that those 
men sitting at the peace table across the seas shall be advised that 
the American Congress suggests and demands and prays and hopes 
that the cards will be laid squarely and fairly upon the table, along 



54 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

with the pack from the other places, and that the pirae will be 
played fair, and that Ireland will be given self-determination. 

I thank you, gentlemen of the committee. ' [Applause.] 

Mr. Daltox. Mr. Chairman, I desire to go upon record as sub- 
mitting arguments to-morrow morning on the propriety of your act- 
ing upon this resolution. 

A Committeeman. Please advise the committee, as to the question 
of propriety, whether you are going to speak for or against the 
resolution ? 

Mr. Daltox. For the propriety of the proposed action. 

A Committeeman. You are in favor of it? 

Mr. Dalton. Most certainly. 

Mr. Goodwin. I move that the committee dp now rise. 

The Ciiairmax. I will ask Mr. Gorman, or Mr. Gallagher, what 
arrangements or program have you for to-morrow? 

Mr. Gorman. There are other gentlemen who want to be heard. 

The Chairmax. How much time do you want? 

Mr. Gorman. If we may be permitted it will take several hours, 
but we can finish in two hours. We will try to complete our side 
to-morrow morning, when others, who will want to speak, will be 
here. 

The Chairman. Does that embrace the president of the organi- 
zation? 

Mr. Gorman. All who want to be heard. 

A Voice. Members of Congress, too. If there are Members of the 
Congress who want to be heard the delegates will be glad to give way 
to them. 

Mr. Gorman- We can complete the hearing in two hours. 

Mr. Eagan. Could we be advised when the other side will be heard? 

The Chairman. That side has not been presented to the commit- 
tee yet. I was informed by Mr. Tilson to-day that there was a gen- 
tleman from his State who wanted to heard, or who wanted to ar- 
range for a hearing. 

Mr. Gorman. Will there be an opportunity in rebuttal? 

The Chairmax. The committee will hear the request. 

A Committeemax. Is that request from one or many ? 

The Chairman. The chair is not advised. 

Mr. Gallivax. I believe those here will welcome anyone who 
wishes to speak in opposition. 

The Chairman. I think the gentleman has a right to be heard, if 
he wants to be heard, and in a very respectful way. We want to hear 
gentlemen whether for or against the resolution. 

Mr. Gallivan. That is just what we have been contending for. 
We do not want the opposition under cover, we want it right out in 
the open. 

Mr. Phelan. May I submit some names for the record ? 

The Chairman. Certainly. 

Mr. Phelan. The following would like to be recorded in favor of 
the resolution : John T. Hearne, of Westfield. Mass. ; John Reidy, of 
Springfield, Mass. ; James J. Fitzgerald, president of the A. O. H. ; 
Patrick Haggerty, of Springfield, Mass.; James J. Morrissey; Dr. 
John F. Kelly, "of Pittsfield, Mass.; John J. Curley. of Boston; 
Richard Dwyer, State president of the A. O. H., Boston; and Hum- 
phrey O'Sullivan, of Lowell. 



TBE IRISH QUESTION. 55 

The Chairman. The committee will now rise until 10 o'clock to- 
morrow morning, and give you two hours further for the hearing, 
as we must adjourn at 12 o'clock to go to the House. 

(And, at 10 o'clock and 30 minutes p. m., the committee adjourned 
until to-morrow morning at 10 o'clock.) 



Committee on Foreign Affairs, 

House of Representatives, 
Washington, D. C, Friday, December 13, 1918. 
The committee met at 10 o'clock a. m. in the hearing room of the 
Ways and Means Committee, House of Representatives Office Build- 
ing, Hon. H. D. Flood (the chairman) presiding. 

The Chairman. The committee will come to order. You may 
proceed, Mr. Gorman. 

Mr. Gorman. I desire that Mr. Richard F. Dalton be allowed time 
this morning at the beginning of the session. After that Congress- 
man Gallagher will apportion the time of the other speakers. 
The Chairman. Mr. Dalton, we will hear you now. 

ADDITIONAL STATEMENT OF MR. RICHARD F. DALTON, OF NEW 

YORK. 

Mr. Dalton. I desire to express myself more particularly on the 
question raised by the chairman on yesterday as to the propriety of 
the Congress of the United States taking action at the present time 
upon such a joint resolution as that presented by Representative 
Gallagher. 

In that connection I desire to point out that the resolution is in no 
way directed to any one of the foreign powers. Neither is that reso- 
lution directed to the peace conference as such. That resolution is 
directed and is but a respectful expression of opinion to the plenipo- 
tentiaries of the United States representing the people of the United 
States at the peace conference. That resolution does not and need 
not create the sentiment which has been so freely expressed before 
this committee during your hearings on yesterday as seeking to de- 
termine the political future of Ireland. It does not seek to say to 
the people of Ireland that their form of Government should be this, 
that, or the other. It does not seek to say to the peace conference 
that the peace conferees should fix the form of government for the 
people of Ireland. The resolution, as I understand the germane 
portion of it, contains the idea of self-determination for the people of 
Ireland, and that the plenipotentiaries of the United States to the 
peace conference should ask for the people of Ireland the right of 
self-determination in order that the people of Ireland may themselves 
decide, without any suggestion whatsoever from us as the United 
States of America, or from other nations of the world, upon the kind 
of government which they desire. 

The Chairman. Do you think the joint resolution (H. J. Res. 357) 
would accomplish the same purpose if we were to strike out the words 
'" freedom, independence, and " and let the question presented to the 
plenipotentiaries at the international peace conference be the right to 
self-determination ? 

Mr. Dalton. I do. 

The Chairman. Do you think that would weaken the resolution? 



56 THE IKISH QUESTION. 

Mr. Dalton. I do not think it would weaken the resolution in any 
sense whatsoever. The words " freedom and independence " might 
possibly be held to predetermine the case, and I feel it was out of the 
greatness and bigness of Mr. Gallagher's heart that the words " free- 
dom and independence " found their way into the resolution. What 
he wants and what we want is merely the right to the people of Ire- 
land to express themselves by way of self-determination. 

Mr. Goodwin. That self-determination is in fact freedom and 
independence. 

Mr. Dalton. Provided the people of Ireland in a plebiscite favor 
it. I want to say that this is the only opportunity through the legis- 
lature of the Government to point out the desires of the people, and 
that after all the Senate has the ratification of treaties within its 
purview. This is the only opportunity for the great liberty-loving 
American people to say to their delegates at the peace conference, 
It is our wish, it is our desire, that the people of Ireland should 
be accorded the right of self-determination. And I submit that 
the resolution as drawn, with the possible amendment that is sug- 
gested, would simply be a respectful expression of the opinion of 
the American people to their delegates abroad that self-determi- 
nation should be applied to Ireland. And when you consider that 
the Irish question is not a domestic question but an international 
question, a disturber of the peace of the world, such expression 
would seem to be necessary. 

Ireland has been invaded several times during the last three cen- 
turies at the request of the Irish people for aid in the overthrow of 
English rule, and the same thing will undoubtedly occur again if 
English rule be allowed to remain either in its present or in any 
other form. 

Spain sent an army to Ireland in 1603 to aid in an Irish insur- 
rection. 

In 1689 France, under Louis XIV, sent an army to Ireland, and 
it fought, in conjunction with an Irish army, until the fall of Lim- 
erick in 1691. 

From 1796 to 1798 the French Republic made three separate at- 
tempts to invade Ireland at the solicitation of Theobald Wolfe Tone, 
the envoy of the United Irishmen. 

Napoleon had a large army mobilized at Boulogne and ready to 
invade England and Ireland, but changed his mind. 

In 1866 and in 1870 the Fenians invaded Canada and had the 
sympathy of many American public men and offers of service from 
several American generals, both Union and Confederate. 

It will doubtless surprise you to hear that Gen. Phil. Sheridan, 
one of the four great soldiers of the Civil War. was ready to stake 
his military reputation by taking command of the Fenians if they 
could supply him with 30,000 men fully armed and equipped. They 
could readily supply him with 30,000 veterans of the Civil War, 
but the arms, equipment, and money for transportation were beyond 
their powers. 

And I submit to you that as history teaches in the past it is only 
fair to look to the future, and only fair to assume that the people 
of Ireland will be looking to armed intervention, and the peace of 
the world must be disturbed unless the people of Ireland have self- 



THE IEISH QUESTION. 57 

determination. So I say, not only in justice to the people of Ireland 
but to the people of the United States, and in justice to the people 
of England themselves, we who have our faces far away from the 
struggle, so far away that we can see the situation fairly, we should 
say in the name of the great liberty-loving American people to our 
plenipotentiaries that the time has come to settle that question which 
for centuries has disturbed the world ; that the time has come to give 
the people of Ireland the right of self-determination. [Applause.] 

Mr. Gallagher. Mr. Chairman, I understand that there is some 
gentleman present who wants to speak in opposition to the joint 
resolution. If he is here, I suggest that he be now heard. 

The Chairman. Mr. Fox, how much time will it take for you to 
present your side of the case ? 

Mr. Fox. I could take two hours. I want to bitterly oppose the 
adoption of the resolution as a miserable insult to the people of the 
United States and of England. 

The Chairman. The gentleman should be a little more conserva- 
tive in his language. 

Mr. Gallagher. Not knowing that the gentleman would come here, 
the time has been allotted in a measure, but I suggest that the com- 
mittee allow the gentleman 10 or 15 minutes to be heard. 

The Chairman. Fifteen minutes, I should say. 

Mr. Gallagher. We can not shut off other speakers who have 
come here, but I suggest that the committee give the gentleman 15 
minutes. 

Mr. Ragsdale. We will determine that. 

Mr. Fox. Should not the opponents of the resolution have as much 
time as the advocates of the resolution ? 

The Chairman. The situation is this: These gentlemen who favor 
the resolution asked to be heard. The Committee on Foreign Affairs 
met and determined to give them a hearing, which action was taken 
a week ago. We had no request for time to be heard in opposition 
to it until yesterday. In the meantime a great many ladies and gen- 
tlemen have come here from all parts of the country to be heard, and 
the time has been apportioned. We have had two hearings, and 
consumed about five hours. We are now having another hearing, to 
consume about two hours. When Mr. Tilson spoke to me about your 
request I told him I would consult the cc mmittee and see if we could 
not hear you this morning. This morning we must rise at 12 
o'clock, and these ladies and gentlemen have come from long dis- 
tances 

Mr. Fox (interposing). I have come from a long distance, too. 

The Chairman. At the same time 1 want to give you a hearing, 
and was making the suggestion to the committee that we hear you 
for 15 or 20 minutes and let the other side proceed as far as they 
could. 

Mr. Gallagher. The gentleman can have the privilege of extend- 
ing his remarks. That will be accorded him, I take it. 

The Chairman. That will be for the committee to determine. 

Mr. Gallagher. Well, I was making a suggestion. 

The Chairman: If that is agreeable to the other side and agreeable 
to the gentlemen of the committee, Mr. Fox may proceed now. 



58 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

STATEMENT OF MR. GEORGE L. FOX, OF NEW HAVEN, CONN. 

Mr. Fox. I am going to take what I can get. I know the Irish 
question from A to Z. I could talk two hours on an analysis of 
Cardinal O'Connell's speech 

The Chairman (interposing). We have not got two hours that we 
can give you. 

Mr. Fox. I came as soon as I saw a piece in the New Haven paper 
that there was going to be a meeting of the friends of Irish freedom. 

Mr. Gallagher. This is a hearing by the Committee on Foreign 
Affairs. 

The Chairman. It is not the fault of the committee that you did 
not get the information a week ago. We fixed the time for this hear- 
ing a week ago, and it was published in the papers all over the country. 

Mr. Fox. I do not want to be obdurate, but it seems to me that both 
sides should have the same time. 

The Chairman. If you bring delegations from different parts of 
the country we will try to arrange a hearing for them. This morn- 
ing you have come, and we will give you 15 minutes. 

Mr. Eagsdale. Don't you think it is arrogating a good deal to your- 
self when you want to take all the time on the side of the opposition 
for yourself ? 

Mr. Fox. I think I should take the time necessary to represent the 
opposite side; and there are many people in my situation in this 
country. 

Mr. Eagsdale. Whom do you represent, Mr. Fox ? 

Mr. Fox. I represent myself. 

Mr. Cooper. Mr. Fox, I suggest that your time is being taken up 
by this discussion on the time to be allowed you. I move that the 
gentleman from Connecticut be given 20 minutes. No other speaker 
has had more than 10 minutes, and that is just twice the time allotted 
to any other speaker. 

The Chairman. You may proceed, Mr. Fox, and you may have 20 
minutes. 

Mr. Fox. For 30 years I have been a student of the Irish ques- 
tion 

The Chairman (interposing). What is your business ? 

Mr. Fox. A teacher in the university school of New Haven, Conn., 
and engaged in preparing pupils for college for 10 years. 

Mr. Kennedy. Teaching what? 

Mr. Fox. All subjects that are included, except physics and chem- 
istry. I was invited by a prominent leader of Great Britain, now a 
private citizen, to take part in the campaign of 1910, and suppose I 
am the only man in America who has had a chance to speak there 
40 times. At that time I was a great admirer of the nationalist side 
and urged home rule for all Ireland except Ulster, and am willing to 
stand on that now. I have been an earnest student of the Irish ques- 
tion for 30 3-ears. and have been reading Gaelic- American papers for 
30 years, and I think I have the best library on the subject that I 
know of. But I want to protest in the strongest way against the 
adoption of such a joint resolution as this coming from the Congress 
of the United States, because it is contrary to the policy of the United 
States, and because many of the men who urge its adoption are men 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 59 

who have no right to claim anything because they were not heart and 
soul in favor of the allies. They wished, many of them, that Ger- 
many should win. In proof of that I am going to read a resolution of 
the Ancient Order of Hibernians, adopted in Boston on July 21, 1916, 
which shows that they were in hearty sympathy with the Germans — 
our enemies, who were sinking our ships — and expressed their cordial 
sympathy with the Germans and the hope that they might be success- 
ful in the war, which, as we all know, was being waged against civiliza- 
tion and against humanity, and that Germany might beat England : 

[Resolutions adopted by the Ancient Order of Hibernians in Boston, July 21, 1916 ; taken 
from the Boston Herald of July 22, 1916.] 

England's achievements against Ireland have been marked by crimes against 
civilization such as have never been surpassed even by England in the long 
record of murder that stains her history. 

The fraternal understanding which unites the Ancient Order of Hibernians 
and the German-American Alliance receives our unqualified indorsement. This 
unity of effort in all matters of a public nature intended to circumvent the 
efforts of England to secure an Anglo-American alliance have been productive 
of very successful results. The congratulations of those of us who live under 
the flag of the United States are extended to our German-American fellow 
citizens upon the conquests won by Germany over England and her allies, and 
we assure them of our unshaken confidence. that the German Empire will crush 
England and aid the liberation of Ireland and be a real defender of small 
nations. 

The trouble is that these men favored Germany in the war, and 
still they come in here and ask the Congress of the United States to 
adopt a joint resolution that they have no right to ask the Congress 
to adopt, and which they have no right to present. If Germany had 
won, they would have had to go before some other peace conference 
aligned with Germany, but when the empire which they have sup- 
ported was beaten they switch around and ask the United States to 
go to that peace conference in their behalf. I say they are not in a 
position to ask such a thing. 

Mr. Ragsdale. May I ask one question there ? 

Mr. Fox. As many as you please. 

Mr. Ragsdale. That is very kind of you. Do you take the posi- 
tion that American citizens have no right to petition the American 
Congress to pass a joint resolution ? 

Mr. Fox. I take the position which former Speaker Cannon took, 
that it is entirely a matter for England to decide, just as it is entirely 
a matter for us to decide whether we shall give Porto Rico or the 
Philippines representation with voting power in the Congress of the 
United States or alter things in the South. That is quite a proper 
position. 

Mr. Ragsdale. Your position, as stated just a minute ago, is that 
these people, because they wanted Germany to win in the world war. 
have no right to petition the Congress of the United States to adopt 
this resolution? 

Mr. Fox. I say when they showed themselves to be supporters oi 
Germany — not only our own enemy but the enemy of our cobellig- 
erent England, but France, Belgium, and the civilized world — the;? 
are not in a position and should not come to the Congress of the 
United States and ask favors. 



60 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

Mr. Porter. What about the rights of the 280,000 and more Irish- 
men who fought all through this world war under the English flag 
and helped to bring about peace ? 

Mr. Fox. That is not a question for us to decide. They fought 
under the flag of their own country and did their part as citizens of 
that country, just as the Scot and the Welshman did. But so far as 
that is concerned, they formed a very small part of the English 
Army. 

Mr. Porter. Don't you think they have some rights ? 

Mr. Fox. Undoubtedly. But how do you know that they want 
independence ? 

Mr. Cooper. They formed a very large part of the male popula- 
tion of Ireland, did they not ? 

Mr. Fox. I can not say that it did. taken as a whole. A great 
portion of Eoman Catholic Ireland raised a million dollars to stop 
conscription. They were not in favor of it and sought to prevent it 
by force, if necessary, in direct opposition to the laws of their coun- 
try, which laws the other portions of the empire respected. 

Mr. Ragsdale. Do you think that a resolution passed by some 
organization prior to the war, when we were neutral, expressing 
sympathy for Germany should bring about a denial of the rights of 
Irish men and Irish women 

Mr. Fox (interposing). Why. certainly not. 

Mr. Ragsdale (continuing). Wait a minute — to offset the claims of 
these Irishmen who fought in the world war? 

Mr. Fox. You do not know what the Irishmen want who fought 
in the war. These men here did not fight! 

A Voice. Did you ? [Laughter.] 

The Chairman. What is the date of that resolution? 

Mr. Fox. July 21, 1916. 

The Chairman. Have you anything that you can read adopted 
since April, 1917? 

Mr. Fox. Oh, no. But I can bring to you lots of newspapers 
showing 

Mr. Ragsdale (interposing). Can you say how many Irishmen 
fought in this war against 

Mr. Fox (interposing). No: and nobody else can tell. But there 
were not anywhere near as many Irishmen fighting in this war as 
Englishmen. 

Mr. Ragsdale. You did not hear the end of my question? 

Mr. Fox. I think I did. 

Mr. Ragsdale. How many Irishmen have fought in this war 
against America ? 

Mr. Fox. Well. I should suppose that possibly 200 fought in the 
war against America : that is. fought in the German ranks. 

Mr. Sabath. Where do you get your figures from? 

Mr. Fox. From a man who has been in the war. He said he saw 
a grave of an Irishman on the German side after the second taking 
of a place by the allies. 

Mr. Ragsdale. Would you say that because 200 Irishmen out of 
the whole nation fought on the German side that the Irish nation 
was disloyal? 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 61 

Mr. Fox. I would not; but I was talking about the position of 
Irishmen in this country, and what they are now asking of the Con- 
gress of the United States. Cardinal O'Connell did his best to keep 
us from going into this war. I can point out to you in the columns 
of the Irish World many articles 

A Voice (interposing). So did Mr. Wilson try to keep us out of 
this war ! 

Mr. Ragsdale. Conscription was objected to in Australia. 

Mr. Fox. Australia is entirely different from Ireland. Australia 
never had one cent out of the British treasury. Australia is a self- 
governing colony. In 1800 Ireland, by the will of a strong Roman 
Catholic population, joined the union of the British Empire, and 
therefore no Irishman has a right to go out of that union any more 
than a citizen of New York has a right to petition that the State of 
New York should secede from the union of States. 

Mr. Ragsdale. Have Australians been disloyal? 

Mr. Fox. Yes, sir. Archbishop Mannix is a most disloyal man. 

The Chairman. The committee will be in order. This gentleman 
has not very much time, and I suggest that we let him proceed with 
his statement. 

Mr. Fox. Sinn Feinism in Ireland is simply the doctrine that we 
knocked out at Appomattox Courthouse, and which Ireland accepted. 
The strongest Roman Catholic portions of Ireland in 1800, through 
their representatives, voted for the union. It is entirely false to say 
that it was bought. Anybody who would consult the histories will 
find to their satisfaction to the contrary. The great historian, J. K. 
Ingram, will tell you that. Robert Dunlap will tell you that. In 
the March, 1917, Christian Science Monitor you will find a very re- 
markable interview with O'Grady, who always lived in Ireland, 
where he makes fun of Irish independence. Ireland has received 
half a million dollars out of the British treasury with which to pur- 
chase lands to be placed in the hands of peasants. This Irish inde- 
pendence proposes to steal $500,000,000 from the taxpayers of Eng- 
land. Would you stand for that in Porto Rico ? We are the last of 
persons who should adopt such a resolution as this. England, if 
impolite, might well say to us : Physician turn and heal thyself. We 
have imposed conscription upon Porto Rico and Hawaii, and yet they 
have not a single vote in the Congress of the United States. At the 
same time Ireland has had two and one-half times her rightful vote 
in the British Parliament. Repeatedly she has received gifts from 
the British Parliament on the understanding that she was an integral 
part of the nation. The most intelligent part, the most enterprising 
part of Ireland— namely, Ulster — longs passionately to remain in the 
union, just as did that portion of old Virginia which is now West 
Virginia. 

Now, then, the British Government promises in due time a settle- 
ment of this question, and I am glad of it. Not because I shall never 
revise my views again in favor of nationalism after the Irish Rebel- 
lion, but because I want England, as I want all other nations, to set- 
tle their internal questions to the satisfaction of their people as far 
as they can be settled with justice to all. I was a great admirer of 
John Redmond and of the great Charles Stewart Parnell. I knew 
T. P. O'Connor; met him in this country and promised him that I 



62 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

would help him, but I can not do that now. I am fighting against the 
principles for which my brother fought in the Civil War, and here 
you gentlemen of the committee are asked to advocate those prin- 
ciples. 

Why, the situation presented here is just like the English might 
say, physician heal thyself. When we have given the right of self- 
determination to Porto Rico, and when we have given the right of 
self-determination to the Philippines, and when we have given the 
right of self-determination to Hawaii, we might hold ourselves up 
and say, Now, England ! But we have never given them the chance 
that Ireland has had, not in the slightest ; we have never given them 
the chance to vote. 

Mr. Porter. I would like to ask 

Mr. Fox (interposing). I can not be interrupted because I only 
have a few minutes more, as the Chairman has suggested. 

Mr. Porter. I insist on an answer, because I do not think you have 
been fair to this country in the references just made to the Philip- 
pines, Hawaii, and Porto Rico. 

Mr. Fox. All right ; go ahead. . 

Mr. Kennedy. We have only had the Philippines and Porto Rico 
for about 20 years, and have been in a way gradually developing them 
along the road toward independence. 

Mr. Fox. I do not believe it. 

Mr. Kennedy. You do not? 

Mr. Fox. No, sir. 

Mr. Kennedy. You think that we will hold them for 700 or 800 
years, do you? 

Mr. Fox. You will hold them for 800 years, unquestionably, in my 
opinion, especially Porto Rico. What about our Monroe Doctrine? 
And it is all a falsehood to say that Ireland has been held by force. 
You will see by these documents I can give to you that the occupation 
of Ireland by England was favored by the Popes. 

Mr. Ragsdale. If Ireland is not being held by force why not let the 
people there determine the question? 

Mr. Fox. You did not do that in the case of some of the States of the 
Union. What did you say to them : You once came into this Union, 
and now you must stay. It must be enough to make Abraham Lin- 
coln and Daniel Webster turn in their graves could they know of this 
request here to-day. 

Mr. Kennedy. Those States voluntarily came into the Union. 

Mr. Fox. So did Ireland in 1800. [Laughter.] It is perfectly true. 
These men back behind me here do not know anything about it. That 
is a perfectly true statement, and is borne out by history. They are 
simply laughing because they do not know. Proof of it may be found 
in J. K. Ingram's history of the Union. 

Mr. Kennedy. Mr. Gladstone knew, and this is what he said : " I 
know of no blacker or fouler transaction in the history of man than 
the making of the union between England and Ireland." 

Mr. Fox. Mr. Gladstone is clearly mistaken. I can quote you just 
as bad things against Ireland as that. I know the whole history of 
Ireland, and if I only had the time I could quote it and talk to you 
about it for hours. It was never a nation. Before the English occu- 
pation it was made up of tribes, who cut each others throats, includ- 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 63 

ing their chiefs. There has never been a nation of the Irish in Ire- 
land any more than there has been a nation of the Irish in this coun- 
try. There were large number of them, and there were tribes, but 
they were never a nation. I never saw a case so full of misleading 
logic as the Irish cause. They talk about a nation, and talk about 
democracy, but they do not know what these words really mean. It 
is very hard to get the people over in this country to know the truth 
about* Ireland. It certainly is. You take such newspapers as the 
Gaelic American and the Irish World and they are full of falsehoods 
all the time. That speech of Cardinal O'Connell's was a speech that 
I would like nothing better than a chance to analyze here before this 
committee. I would like an opportunity to stop and show you where 
he varies from the true situation all the way through. [Laughter.] 

The Chairman. I must ask that the gentleman be given a chance 
to finish his statement without interruption. He has but a few 
minutes left. 

Mr. Fox. I want to take up one point more : There has been some 
claim made on the ground of gratitude for the part taken by the 
Irish in our wars made by those who are advocating this resolution. 
There comes in for consideration what is the meaning of the term. 
They use Irish in three or four different senses. Every time you use 
the word " Irish " you must analyze it. It may mean Roman 
Catholic Irish, or just Irish like Roger Casement, or the Protestant 
members of the Protestant churches of Ireland. The Irish who 
fought for us were a very small portion of the whole country. In 
the statistics published by the Census Bureau in 1907 it is shown 
that the first time a census was taken there were only 0.105 of the 
population of the United States that were Irish, and the most of 
those were Presbyterian Irish. And that is borne out by Victor 
Dowling, one of the justices of the Supreme Court of New York, 
in one of the last numbers of the Irish World. He said that the 
Roman Catholic Irish did not begin to come here until 1832. It is 
the Roman Catholic Irish portion only who desire independence. 
And there was hardly one-half of 1 per cent of Roman Catholic Irish 
in the Revolutionary Army. There were no Roman Catholic Irish 
in the Constitutional Convention and very few here at the time of 
the Declaration of Independence. If it had not been for the 
German King we would have continued as a colony, like Canada, 
for we had not many friends, but the stubborn German King would 
not give in. We tried for one whole year to escape independence, as 
all historians will tell you, when the olive branch was extended by 
George III. 

When the first bishop was applied for in 1775 there were only 
256 Roman Catholics in the United States of all the largest nations, 
including Dutch, French, and so forth. The first church built in 
New York was St. Peters, I think, built in 1785. There was none in 
Boston until shortly after that. The Irish who fought in the Revo- 
lution constituted not more than 5 per cent, many of whom were 
Protestants from Ulster, of the class from which the late President 
McKinley and President Wilson descended. There is not the slight- 
est basis of gratitude for what they did. And if there had been, 
the England of to-day is very different from the England of George 



64 • THE IRISH QUESTION. 

III. It is more republican than we are in many respects, and Ireland 
entered the union willingly in 1800. 

Now, gentlemen of the committee, while you will find the state- 
ment made all the time — yet there is no possible basis for it, it being 
a pure assumption — that the Roman Catholic Irish won the Revolu- 
tion. All of the glory that belongs to the Statue of Liberty belongs 
to the English race, for they formed 87 per cent of the population, 
according to the census statistics at the time of the First Census. 
And it was made clear by Senator Lodge 15 years ago when speak- 
ing on the English Colonies in America. But the statement has 
constantly been made until Mr. Victor Dowling was fair enough to 
correct it. You will find his statement in a number of the Irish 
World of about three weeks ago on the early Irish- Americans. There 
is no basis for that claim, and almost all of the books published on 
this point are exceedingly misleading — one by MacManus and one by 
Leslie. Leslie makes this absurd statement, that Robert Treat Paine 
was a descendant of O'Neil, who fought Queen Elizabeth. All he 
would have to do would be to turn to the books. I asked a descend- 
ant of Robert Treat Paine about it, and he said there was nothing 
in it; that their ancestors came from Kent, in England. The same 
is true of the value of the Irish in the Civil War. He says the Sixty- 
ninth threw back Pickett's brigade at Gettysburg. I do not think 
anybody can say who threw back Pickett's brigade at Gettysburg, 
though the Fourteenth Connecticut and Cushing's battery had as 
much to do with it as anybody. It is said the First Minnesota 
stopped them in the woods after the first day's fighting. 

The Chairman. Mr. Fox, your time has expired. 

Mr. Gallagher. The next speaker 

A Voice (interposing). May I ask the speaker if he is an American 
citizen ? [Laughter.] 

Mr. Fox. My ancestors came from London in 1639 and settled in 
New England, and they have been there ever since. I was born in 
New Haven 65 years ago. I could qualify for admission to the Sons 
of the American Revolution if I wanted to, which very few Irish- 
Americans can do. 

The Chairman. Mr. Fox, your time has expired. 

Mr. Fox. I want to say to you 

The Chairman (rapping for order). Mr. Fox, your time has ex- 
pired, and you will have to take your seat. 

Mr! Gallagher, The next speaker will be Miss Katherine Hughes, 
representing the Irish Women's Council of America, and who has 
been allotted 15 minutes. 

The Chairman. Miss Hughes will have 15 minutes. 

STATEMENT OF MISS KATHERINE HUGHES, REPRESENTATIVE OF 
IRISH WOMEN'S COUNCIL OF AMERICA. 

Miss Hughes. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, I 
represent the Irish Women's Council of America, which is organized 
from New York to San Francisco. Like the parent body in Ireland, 
its membership consists of Catholic and Protestant women of Irish 
blood, illustrating the salient point of all the Irish movements of this 
century — unity of Catholics and Protestants. The founders of our 



THE IRISH QUESTION*. 65 

council were Mrs. John R. Green, the noted historian and Irish Prot- 
estant patriot ; Mary Spring-Rice, niece of the late Sir Cecil Spring- 
Rice; the granddaughters of Archbishop Trench, the great Anglican 
primate of Ireland; and the daughters of Charles Gavan Duffy and 
Barry O'Brien, the colleague and biographer of Charles Stewart 
Parnell. 

Mr. Cooper. Did you say Mrs. Green was the widow of the great 
historian ? 

Miss Hughes. Yes ; Mrs. Green is the widow of John R. Green, the 
historian, and herself one of the greatest living historians. 

IRISH IN REVOLUTIONARY WAR. 

I have spoken of the unity of creeds in all the new movements in 
Ireland. There seems to be less harmony on this side of the Atlantic 
when a statement can be deliberately made, as in your presence this 
morning, that the Irish Catholics — which always means Irish of the 
original Gaelic stock — played no part of any worth in the Revolu- 
tionary War of 1776. 

The speaker omits the fact that the first four regiments from France 
were made up of Irish Catholic soldiers; that 19 of their officers were 
of the old Irish nobility ; that, at that period in America, under Eng- 
land's rule, there was no religious toleration except in Catholic Mary- 
land and Quaker Pennsylvania, and consequently Irish Catholics out- 
side these districts had little formal organization; that even the 
sentence in the Declaration of Independence which provided religious 
freedom throughout this Republic was framed by a Maryland Catho- 
lic — Archbishop Carroll. 

Why has he also omitted the fact that in the Revolutionary War 
there were 50,000 " Loyalists " in the English Army, fighting against 
America (" Loyalists in the American Revolution," p. 183), and these 
were mainly from New England ; that, as Dr. William J. A. Maloney 
points out in his " Ulster Aspect of the Irish Issue," Washington 
termed these American-born antagonists of American freedom " as 
'abominable pests of society,' and treated them as traitors"? 

I wonder if the last speaker [Mr. Fox] hoped to win belief for 
his statement that, " In 1800, Ireland, by the will of a strong Catholic 
population, joined the union" of British parliaments? Does he not 
know that the Irish Catholics, still living in 1800 under the shadow 
of the penal laws, were practically without representation in the 
Irish Parliament of that period; that no Irish Catholic or Irish 
Presbyterian could be a member of that parliament; that, of its 300 
members, only 28 members were elected; that, of the 162 members 
who voted for the union, " 116 were placemen (appointees of the 
English Government and its henchmen) ; some of whom were Eng- 
lish generals on the staff without one foot of ground in Ireland and 
completely dependent upon the Government * * *," as Lord Grey 
stated in his reply to Pitt protesting against the corruption and dis- 
honorable means by which this Union was obtained. 

Does not this New Haven protagonist of England and English 
policy throughout the centuries [Mr. Fox] realize that the much- 
quoted Catholic archbishop in Ireland who endeavored to argue in 
H. Doc. 1832, 65-3 5 



66 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

favor of this union was persuaded to do so by a definite pledge from 
Pitt that, if the union of parliaments were effected, the English Gov- 
ernment would abolish the remaining penal laws and grant to the 
Irish Catholics a complete emancipation? Needless to say, that 
pledge to the credulous Irish cleric was promptly repudiated after 
1800, and Archbishop Troy, in his chagrin and disillusionment, found 
no sympathy among his own people, for few of them had approved 
of his unpatriotic and ill-judged course. 

But these old fables of anti-Irish propaganda have been answered 
a score of times before. Matters of to-day clamor for our under- 
standing. 

AMERICAN INTERVENTION. 

Miss Hughes. I ask consideration from the committee upon three 
points with regard to the arguments that are being advanced in 
America as to why America should not intervene at the Peace Con- 
ference in support of Irish self-determination. The doubt of Amer- 
ica's right to do this is, happily, shared by only a few and is not in 
accord with American traditions of human liberty. It is the result 
of the most intensive and extensive propaganda against any nation 
that this clean New World has ever known. But it has not affected 
the views of the most thoughtful Americans. Last February your 
esteemed colleague, the late Senator Stone of Missouri, said to me, 
in his office and speaking in his official capacity : 

I believe, of course, that Ireland has a right to her independence as a distinct 
nation. At present, and while the war continues, of course nothing can be 
done by us to assist her cause. But when the war is over our Government 
should take action, and I am sure it will. 

At the same time he spoke of Dr. MacCartan, the envoy of the 
Irish Provisional Government, with as much seriousness and respect 
as the members of the welcoming Irish Parliament in 1771 spoke of 
Benjamin Franklin when he went among them as a similar envoy of 
the American rebels. 

RELIGIOUS QUESTION AND ULSTER. 

The first argument advanced against American intervention is 
that religious differences in Ireland are so great that the country 
could not possibly govern itself. I will say that one of the first re- 
buttals of this is the flag of Ireland to-day — the Tricolor — the 
orange and green with the white of peace between. [Miss Hughes 
here produced the flag of the Irish Republic] The only flag recog- 
nized by our Irish Women's Council and by the people of Ireland as 
the Irish flag to-day is this flag which I would now present for the 
record. It is a more eloquent testimony of Irish unity than any 
words can be. 

The Chairman. I do not know whether the Public Printer can re- 
produce it in the printed hearing, but it will be furnished him, so 
that he may do so, if he can. 

Miss Hughes. I thank you. 

It is not a new flag; it is over 125 years old ; Irishmen, Catholic and 
Protestant, have died for this flag in five armed rebellions in the last 
125 years. In its beautiful symbolism it was designed by Wolfe Tone, 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 67 

the great Protestant leader of Ireland in 1798, who paid with his 
life for his patriotism. 

It was for this orange and green with the white of peace between 
that the men of Easter week died. It is this flag alone that over 80 




per cent of the Irish population to-day, Catholic and Protestant, 
recognizes, and I am glad of the permission so kindly granted by the 
chairman to place this flag in the record. 

The superhuman struggle made by Irishmen of all creeds in those 
five armed rebellions was not alone for the three inalienable rights 
of man — the right to live, the right to hold property, the right to 
govern themselves — but for the further right to dwell amicably 
among themselves, countrymen of all creeds, without interference or 
political intrigue from outside. 

There is no record in history of religious persecution by any Irish 
government; religious intolerance is foreign to the Gaelic nature. 
In the seventeenth century, when all Europe was torn with religious 
wars, Irish Catholics, in framing their Eebel government at Kil- 
kenny, specifically stated in their constitution (statutes of Kilkenny, 
1643) that all creeds were to have perfect religious freedom* in 
Ireland. 

FACTS ABOUT ULSTER. 

The plain facts of the Ulster question are these: The people of 
northeast Ulster were first settled there in the seventeenth century 
upon lands forcibly taken from the Irish. In time the dispossessed 
learned not only to forgive but to love the newcomers, and toward 
the close of the eighteenth century Irish Protestant volunteers, stand- 
ing like brothers beside their unarmed Catholic brethren, demanded 
the religious emancipation of the Catholics at their historic Dun- 
gannon meeting. These volunteers, under the statesmanlike direction 
of Henry Grattan and Henry Flood, who was not merely the name- 
sake but the historic ancestor of your chairman here to-day, wrested 
from England not alone a soveiegn parliament but the act of renun- 
ciation of 1783, providing — 

* * * that the rights claimed by the people of Ireland to be bound only by 
laws enacted by His Majesty and the Parliament of that Kingdom is hereby 
declared to be established and ascertained forever, and shall at no time here- 
after be questioned or questionable. 



68 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

- Then the ruling powers at London decided that the house of Ire- 
land must be divided against itself, otherwise it would become free 
and independent of the usurping English rule. 

There was then hatched in London a scheme of religious antago- 
nism for Ireland, planned in the same way as the " Ulster rebellion," 
which I personally saw being formulated in London in 1913-14, and 
which was afterwards set down in Ulster and proclaimed to the 
world as an Irish problem. The same mediums were used then as 
now — the powerful landlord and employer with his London affilia- 
tions. In this way a religious scarecrow was erected in the fair 
fields of Eire. 

Unhappily, this foreign importation, sedulously cultivated, became 
an accepted reality among the Irish people. But the Gaelic nature 
soon asserted itself. Men like Robert Emmett, John Mitchell, 
Thomas Davis, and Charles Stewart Parnell on the one side, and 
Daniel O'Connell, Charles Gavan Duffy, John Redmond, and Arthur 
Griffith, on the other side, threw bridges across the gulf. 

IRELAND AGAIN UNITED. 

And now again, when the people of Ireland have come together 
with little of that alien prejudice lingering, the new Ireland is too 
well educated and too sophisticated ever to be put apart again to its 
national disadvantage. 

To-day the population of Ireland is, approximately, three-fourths 
Catholic and one-fourth Protestant. The actual figures are: Catho- 
lic. 3,242,670; Protestant, 1,147,549; total, 4,390,219. In the Province 
of Ulster there are: Protestants, 890.880; Catholics, 690,816; the 
Protestant majority being 200,064 for all Ulster. 

In the six counties which were seized from the O'Neills and the 
O'Donnells and the O'Cahans in 1621 the popufation now is: Prot- 
estats, 820,367; Catholics, 430,164: Protestant majority, 390,203. 

PROPOSED PARTITION OF IRELAND. 

It is for this majority of 390,203 of all Protestants in these six 
counties — many of whom are not only nationalists but Sinn Fein — 
that Premier Lloyd-George has implied the 3,242,670 Irish Catholics 
must still be coerced by an alien government. The only alternative 
offered by the English Government to this alien rule is the partition 
of Ireland by cutting out the six counties and their Protestant major- 
ity from the rest of Ireland. These counties contain one of the seats 
of the ancient high kings of Ireland, who held parliament and courts 
there in the days before and after Christ. They also contain the 
burymg place of St. Patrick. Yet English statesmen propose to 
divide this ancient State as casually as though it were a new and 
empty township in Wyoming. 

No one can seriously make this proposition but one whose national 
vision is distorted by the use of an imperial monocle. Both Sir 
Horace Plunkett and the present Anglican primate of the Church of 
England in Ireland have stated that such a partition would be dis- 
pleasing to all Ireland. The people of Ireland as a whole are as little 
likely to accept this proposition as the English people would the idea 
of carving out Lancashire from England, because the population of 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 69 

that county is largely permeated with Scotch, Welsh, and Irish blood, 
and because traditionally the attitude of the Lancashire people is 
critical and rather unfriendly to the people of the south of England. 

Ireland's attitude in the great war. 

The second argument advanced against America's interference is 
that Ireland did not take her full share in this recent war for human 
liberty. As has already been stated here, at the beginning of the war 
the volunteering in Ireland was as prompt and as generous as in any 
other part of the world, because Belgium and France are traditionally 
friends of Ireland. 

When Asquith went to Dublin on a recruiting tour in 1914 the stage 
on which he spoke had for decorations the ancient royal flag of Ire- 
land, the blue and gold; the appeals to the people were printed in 
Gaelic, and Asquith told the young men of Ireland that England's 
sword would never be sheathed until she had secured the rights of the 
small nations of Europe. But that very same autumn his party 
withheld giving the long-promised home rule to Ireland and buried 
it on the statute books. This was done, notwithstanding a personal 
pledge that had been given to John Eedmond, and on the faith of 
which Redmond's Irish party had for years loyally supported As- 
quith's party, aiding them to pass through the English Parliament 
legislation which could not have been passed without their aid — 
much-needed measures of reform for the poor and working classes 
of England. 

IRELAND GAVE 6^. PER CENT OF POPULATION. 

Notwithstanding this treatment 6| per cent of Ireland's total popu- 
lation enlisted under the British flag to fight for the rights of small 
nations. The actual figures, verified in most part by me at the Con- 
gressional Library on yesterday, are these : 

According to Lord Wimborne's report to Lord Kitchener of Janu- 
ary 14, 1916, there were 51,046 Irishmen serving as regulars and 
reservists in the British Army in August, 1914. According to Sir 
Eric Geddes, in the House of Commons, there were up to 1918, 170,000 
enlistments in Ireland. According to the statement of Mr. T. P. 
O'Connor, M. P., after a statistical survey of conditions, there were 
over 35,00,0 Irish boys temporarily employed away from home who 
enlisted in English and Scotch regiments in 1914-15. According to 
Lord Wimborne's report there were 8,546 Irishmen in the English 
Navy. In 1918 there were over 7,000 enlistments in Ireland, and ac- 
cording to a most conservative estimate of the naval reservists and 
naval enlistments later the number is put at 4,000, making a total of 
275.592 Irishmen fighting in the English Army and Navy during 
this war. 

But the propaganda against Ireland in this country ignores the 
fact that Ireland was fighting for liberty on two fronts — at home and 
abroad. Whilst the young men were so generously volunteering in 
1914 the Sinn Fein party, which up to that time had been regarded as 
a group of political theorizers, became profoundly constructive and 
active in their propaganda. 



70 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

Like a skilled surgeon's probe, the forces of this party were now 
directed to a menace that threatened the body of the nation with 
death. Irishmen, whose natural valor and high spirits made them 
invaluable as soldiers, were being urged by England to march under 
her banner and fight for the liberty of Belgium, for the rights of 
Serbia and other small nations. And Redmond and a great majority 
of his party went recruiting in Ireland for this purpose. 

After the first generous period of volunteering was over Sinn Fein 
determinedly blocked recruiting by declaring that the first duty of 
Irishmen was to devote their lives to secure the liberty and rights of 
a small nation known as Ireland, whose freedom had been taken 
from her by her strong neighbor England long before Serbia fell 
under Turkey, or Belgium was invaded by Germany. Moreover, 
Sinn Fein argued that Ireland alone of the ancient nations of Eu- 
rope was a country drained of its young manhood, and that it would 
not be long before it would be made up of the very old and the very 
young. Cleared lands with tenants evicted to turn estates into graz- 
ing lands, artificially created famines, throttled industries, and en- 
forced emigration in hundreds of thousands to America had long 
bled Ireland white of her most virile manhood. 

DEPOPULATION OF IRELAND. 

In 1844 Ireland had about 5,000,000 cattle and 9,000,000 people. 

In 1914 Ireland had over 10,000,000 cattle and little over 4,000,000 
people. 

England's assumed sway over Ireland, as Arthur Griffiths points 
out. had obviously favored raising cattle and as patently checked the 
raising of Irishmen. 

If Ireland, traditionally friendly with Belgium and France (the 
Ireland of whose sons 450.000 had died in France's service alone 100 
years after Sarsfield led his exiled forces to France), had in 1914 
recruited men for the English Army at the rate she was urged to do 
by Englishmen, the Irish Nation would now be nearer extinction 
that the Serbian or Belgian. 

The Sinn Fein party was determined that Ireland should not in a 
generous moment commit national suicide, nor be driven to an act 
that would threaten the Gaelic nation with extinction as complete 
as the ancient Egyptians. 

Sinn Fein went into the highways and byways of Ireland preach- 
ing to the meager remnant of Ireland's young manhood. Theirs was 
heroic work, making vocal the spirit of the nation at a time when 
it meant one continuous succession of persecutions, imprisonments, 
and hardships. They said: 

Bitter as the need of our neighbor Belgium is your first duty is to conserve 
the Irish race and win its freedom. Tf any other Irishmen go into this war 
they will go as freemen. Men — as Irishmen make your stand at home! Win 
your freedom here first. For by the sacred memories of Brian, Hush, Tone, 
Parnell and the rest, the Irish race is going to live. It is going to own its own 
country. It is going to rule its own country. Before God Erin will again be 
free ! 

IRISH WOMEN ANDjCONSCRIPTION. 

And not alone the men of Ireland but its women folk answered the 
cry that ran like the old Fiery Cross of the Gael from hill to hill of 
Ireland. 



THE IEISH QUESTION. 71 

To avert the immediate threat of conscription as well as to main- 
tain Ireland's ancient demand for sovereign independence the men 
of Ireland rose in revolt in 1916. They succeeded in averting con- 
scription. A year later the threat of conscription was renewed by 
England. Three hundred thousand Irishmen, said to be the best 
missile troops in Europe, were hoped for by the English 'military 
authorities. The Irish people promptly demurred. 

The attitude of Tory England was voiced in the London Spectator, 
which headed an editorial on Irish conscription: "Don't argue; 
shoot!"— the Irish if they do not comply. The Sinn Fein campaign 
now swept the country, and it made the headway it did simply be- 
cause it was voicing the spirit of the people. It drew into closest 
union with it Labor's political party and the dignitaries of the 
church ; in fact, the whole nation of Ireland, including a large num- 
ber of Protestants, was firmly opposed to conscription. 

The Independent Orangemen marched with the Sinn Fein fol- 
lowers in protest against it. The Protestant Women's Organization 
was one of the most active against conscription. At this time there 
were in English factories alone 3,000,000 men employed in ad- 
dition to all her other millions of men, and the Irish people well 
asked themselves, " Hasn't the Irish race the same right to continue 
its existence that the English race has? Why should we be deci- 
mated?" 

At this time also there were hundreds of thousands of men in one 
miners' union alone in the south of Wales. No other civilized country 
in Europe was so disproportionately lacking in men of military age 
as Ireland was. 

STATISTICS OF IRISH MAN POWER. 

By the 1911 statistics there were in Ireland of military age only 
776,000 men, married and unmarried, fit and unfit. Great numbers of 
the younger and stronger Irishmen had for decades been compelled 
to go overseas to America, because of the system to which Arthur 
Chamberlain (brother of Joseph Chamberlain and managing director 
of Kynoch's) referred in his interview in July, 1907, with Arthur 
Griffiths in Dublin, when he said : 

That it was a definite part of English policy to prevent any serious industrial 
or commercial development in Ireland. That he himself was convinced that 
that policy was wrong, but that it was equally held and practiced by Tories 
and Liberals, and it would be practiced until Ireland had a form of government 
under which she controlled her own finances and had the power to impose 
protective tariffs. 

In January, 1916, Lord Wimborne, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, 
reported to Lord Kitchener that there were then only about 400,000 
single men of military age in Ireland; that of these at least 252,000 
were essential to agriculture, and other industries would absorb 
about 48,000, which left a balance of possibly 100,000 men available 
for the army. 

FEAR OF A NEW PLANTATION. 

The women of Ireland now played a most active part in opposing 
the application of conscription to Ireland. The men abhorred it 
because it meant the usurpation of the nation's rights over her own 
man power. 



72 THE IEISH QUESTION. 

The women rebelled against it for another cause; they knew if 
the men of Ireland were decimated any further that it would mean 
a new "plantation" of alien men, of English returned soldiers, in 
Ireland upon the 11,000,000 acres which still remain untilled in the 
great estates and available for division. 

This would mean eventually the extinction of the race and the 
passing of the nation. The women of Ireland knew that already 
close to 1,000 acres had been planted by returned English veterans; 
so had the men of Ireland faltered in their opposition to conscription 
the women of Ireland would have urged them forward. 

They knew that the loss of their own manhood would have meant 
that eventually they would have had to mate with the men of the 
new plantation and bring up their children, not as Irishmen, but as 
" loyal citizens " of the British Empire, and subjects of the country 
which had accomplished the ruin of their own race. They would 
prefer death to such a prospect. 

So the women of Ireland, in their hundreds of thousands, went 
out and pledged resistance by every means in their power to con- 
scription. They vowed they would not take any posts made vacant 
by the discharge of men from employment, and if in 1918 the leaders 
of the older political party and the dignitaries of the Catholic 
Church had not come in with the people of Ireland and compelled 
action as a whole nation and averted conscription, the men and the 
women of Ireland had planned to die at their own thresholds or on 
their own hillsides in little groups to avert national disaster. 

I have been told even in Washington that the anticonscription agi- 
tation was ordered from Rome. I would say in rebuttal of this false 
bit of propaganda that the leaders of the National Party in Ireland 
to-day, Catholic and Protestant, will upon national questions take 
no dictation from any power outside their own country. They are 
entirely competent to decide every Irish question themselves. 

WHY AMERICA SHOULD INTERVENE. 

The third argument that has been advanced against America's 
intervention in Irish affairs is simply, Why should America inter- 
fere ? I have been told that this is a very difficult question to answer. 
In my belief, to every genuine American a much more difficult ques- 
tion to answer is, Why shouldn't America intervene and aid the 
Irish people in securing the right to govern themselves in whatever 
form they may decide? 

America should intervene — 

Because of all that is best in American traditions and ideals for 
human liberty. 

Because of the statements made by President Wilson in the Con- 
gress before he asked the Congress to vote for America's entry into 
the war. 

Because of the repeated statements on the part of the President 
since that time that America was fighting for democracy and to end 
oppression. 

Because the Nation in going to war sincerely believed in these state- 
ments and felt that they were sending out their sons to fight for 
oppressed nations. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 73 

Because there is no nation in the world more terribly oppressed 
nor for a greater period of time than the Irish, except the Jews, 
whose wrongs are now being righted. 

Because the American Army was made up of 30 per cent of men of 
Irish blood and the American Navy 40 per cent of men of Irish blood, 
and in the hearts of every one of these men there was the hope that 
their sacrifice would not alone strengthen their beloved country, 
America, but would insure freedom for the old land of their fore- 
fathers. 

Because when America offered her sons by the millions for the 
cause of liberty and her gold flowed in unending streams in the cause 
of freedom, not only one but ma^r States appealed to their people 
in the words of this Minneapolis circular : 

We have entered this war for an ideal — the right to liberty, happiness, op- 
portunity — not for ourselves alone, but for all the peoples of all the world. 

Because America can not afford to go down in history as having 
been false to her first ally and constant friend — Ireland. 

BRITISH LABOR FOR SELF-DETERMINATION. 

Because the British Labor Party has definitely placed as a plank in 
its platform this clause, " Self-determination for all peoples, includ- 
ing Ireland " — as stated by Arthur Henderson, leader of that party, 
in reply to Samuel Gompers last summer. 

Because Lloyd-George, in outlining his war aims last January, said 
concerning colonies of negroes in South Africa : 

* * * The inhabitants should be placed under the control of an adminis- 
tration acceptable to themselves. * * * The general principle of national 
self-determination is as applicable in their case as in those of occupied Euro- 
pean territory. 

Because, as the Freeman's Journal, organ of the Dillon political 
party in Ireland, said editorially : 

Were the United States to accept the English contention that she has no 
right to decide on the merits of the case as between Great Britain and Ireland, 
she might please the British Government, but she would delight even more the 
rulers of the central powers, whom she would present with a precedent which 
will be invaluable at the Peace Conference when the cases of Poland, Bohemia, 
and Transylvania come up for final settlement. If Ireland's is a domestic 
question, all those are also domestic questions, and if the rule is to be that a 
State may dictate to an enemy at the point of the sword, but must not remon- 
strate over wrongs with a cobelligerent, the new league of nations is not likely 
to prove of more benefit to oppressed races than Metternich's Holy Alliance after 
the Napoleonic wars. 

AMERICA THE WORLD'S ARBITER. 

America must intervene to aid Ireland in her struggle for self-de- 
termination, because America is now the world's arbiter. It is an in- 
controvertible fact that by this country's marvelous outpouring of 
men, money, and munitions she became the decisive factor in the 
winning of the world war. 

To-day, as at every peace conference of the past, there will be one 
dominant voice present, and to-day, for the first time in the world's 
history, it is that of a genuine democracy, of a country governed by 
the people and for the people, one so strong that no one can afford to 



74 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

lose her good will, not even England if asked to release Ireland ; one 
so strong that she can set the torch of liberty ablaze at the gateways 
of every country in the world as well as her own. 

But this great moment was foreseen and arranged to be met by a 
school of diplomacy and politics which is the oldest and most finished 
in the world. Consequently with regard to Ireland this country has 
been filled with British propaganda. It has sat in the editorial chairs 
of America. It has stalked like a giant through the money markets. 
It has slipped in gentler guise into the Federal Capital. 

It will confront America's envoys at the peace table. And there 
will be played the finest game of diplomatic bluff that the world has 
ever seen. America's late cobelligerent holds strong cards. She will 
hold in her hand as regards Ireland two very strong pairs — the one, 
of present possession, although by force; the other, the most effective 
imperial diplomacy. 

But America holds all the aces — financial and commercial superi- 
ority ; unlimited wealth in the future within herself and not dependent 
upon any outside factor ; and, last and greatest of all, moral right. 

IRELAND AT THE PEACE CONFERENCE. 

When there comes to the peace conference the harried leaders of 
gallant Ireland, which has fought so valiantly and long for freedom — 
when they come to the gates of the conference and ask that the people 
of Ireland shall have the right to select for themselves the form of 
government under which they desire to live, I know what AVashington, 
Franklin, Jefferson, and Lincoln would do if they were there. They 
would be true to the Declaration of Independence, the greatest charter 
of human liberty the world has ever seen. 

I know what Lincoln would do if he were there. I know what Lin- 
coln said on just such a cause. I copied the words here in Washington 
in the room in which he died : 

I have never had a feeling politically that did not spring from the sentiments 
embodied in the Declaration of Independence, * * * the great principle that 
kept this confederacy together was * * * that sentiment in the Declaration 
of Independence which gave liberty not alone to the people of this country but. 
I hope, to the world for all future time. It was that which gave promise that in 
due time the weight would bo lifted from the shoulders of all men. 

America alone can, without bloodshed, lift from the shoulders of 
Ireland — our Dark Eosaleen — the unlovely and unwieldly bulk of 
England's weight, which she has resisted with such fierce and proud 
endurance for 700 years. 

If Washington and Lincoln were alive to-day, I know what they 
would do; and, Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, I 
believe I know what you are going to do. [Great applause.] 

(Miss Hughes then expressed a desire to add to the record, without 
reading it, an editorial from Nationality of February 23, 1918, con- 
cerning Ireland's trade conditions.) 

STRANGLING IRISH INDUSTRIES. 

[Nationality, Saturday, Feb. 23, 1918.] 

In the days of Elizabeth England made it treason for an Irishman to own a 
ship ; in the days of Charles II England made it felony for the Irish to export 
produce in Irish ships — or in English ships without England's leave — in the days 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 75 

of William III England made it criminal for Ireland to carry on its staple 
manufacture; in the days of the Georges England interdicted all trade between 
Ireland and the outside world and loaded our linens, cottons, glass, brassware, 
and 50 other industries with prohibitive duties; in the days of William IV 
England prohibited our tobacco industry; in the days of Victoria England an- 
nihilated our fisheries ; and having succeeded after 300 years of repression in 
driving the Irish from tillage and manufacturing industry back into the shep- 
herd state, England lamented to Europe our poverty and our backwardness. 

Three hundred years have brought changes in England's circumstances — none 
to England's heart or England's policy toward this country. So long as England 
controls the customs of Ireland she controls the trade and commerce of Ireland, 
and is armed to destroy that trade and commerce when she will. In the last 
few days England has shown her hand in Arklow. In that town there is a 
factory of Kynoch's, which the English Government sought to close down in 
1907, and now seeks to close down again in 1918. * * * 

The destruction of the Arklow industry has been an object of the British 
Government for the past 10 years. In 1915 we published in Nationality a 
signed article on the subject, which we to-day reproduce, since thousands who 
did not read it then will read it now. Let them ponder the facts and they will 
realize that while England holds her grip on this country — holds our customs 
in her hands — Irish industry will never be allowed to develop. 

FBOM NATIONALITY, JULY 31, 1915. 

Some of the orators and journalists who support the English Government in 
Ireland have discovered a grievance against that institution and, greatly daring, 
grumbled. The grievance is that firms in Ireland are not getting orders for 
munitions. The English Government, however, is going to look into the matter, 
and so all is well, and those who believe that that Government has ceased to 
swindle Ireland can again occupy their minds with remembering Belgium, if 
they do not read further. 

In July, 1907, the managing director of Kynoch's wrote to me stating that the 
chairman of that company had read something of what I had written on Irish 
affairs, particularly on industrial conditions in Ireland, and that he was anxious 
to discuss the matter of industrial development in Ireland. I met Mr. Arthur 
Chamberlain, chairman of Kynoch's, and Mr. Cocking, the manager, by ar- 
rangement at the Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin. We had three interviews — 
at each of which I was accompanied by a friend of mine, a Dublin man of busi- 
ness. It was obvious on the second interview that Mr. Chamberlain's real 
object was to protect Kynoch's from loss over its Arklow factory. Eventually 
this was effected. The substance of Mr. Chamberlain's statements in the matter 
will be of interest just now to those who believe in leopards changing their 
spots, and other phenomena. 

ARTHUR CHAMBERLAIN'S VIEWS. 

Mr. Chamberlain opened by saying that he had read a speech of mine, issued 
as a pamphlet, on the Sinn Fein policy, with the industrial portion of which he 
was in complete accord. As chairman of Kynoch's, he had caused that firm to 
have something that might be called a private industrial survey of Ireland 
made. The result was to satisfy him as a business man that Ireland was one 
of the richest countries in the material of great industries ; that her people had 
a great natural aptitude for commerce and manufacture ; and that nothing but 
ignorance, lack of capital, or repressive government stood in the way of making 
her a great industrial and commercial State. All this was trite, but it was 
interesting to listen to it recited from the lips of the head of England's greatest 
industrial concern. 

Mr. Chamberlain went on to describe the coming of Kynoch's to Ireland and 
the birth of which it was to be the germ. Kynoch's, satisfied by their investi- 
gators and chemists of the teeming natural wealth of Ireland, had planned 
a scheme of industrial development through subsidiary Irish companies. The 
Southeast of Ireland, which Kynoch's had discovered to be a richer pottery 
district than the famous pottery country of England, was to be worked by 
an Irish company financed in the beginning by Kynoch, the matchless iron of 
Leitrim was again to be wrought by Irish hands, and so forth. A pleasant 
scheme, after describing which Mr. Chamberlain requested my opinion. My 
opinion was that, to be wholly beneficial to Ireland, the scheme should be 



76 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

worked altogether on Irish capital; that I realized it was impossible in the 
present circumstances of Ireland to induce Irish capitalists to venture on 
any large scheme of national industrial development ; that therefore a scheme 
by which Kynoch's would initially supply the capital and organize the develop- 
ment through Irish companies would be acceptable under some restrictions. 
But I asked Mr. Chamberlain whether he, as a great English industrialist, 
really believed that the English Government would encourage Kynoch's or 
any other firm or syndicate which it could bring pressure upon to develop 
Ireland's industrial arm. 

ENGLISH POLICY OF REPRESSION. 

Mr. Chamberlain replied that he did not ; that it was a definite part of English 
policy to prevent any serious industrial or commercial development in Ire- 
land ; that he himself was convinced that policy was wrong, but that it was 
equally held and practiced by Tories and Liberals, and it would be practiced 
until Ireland had a form of home rule under which she controlled her own 
finances and had power to impose protective tariffs. No other form of home 
rule could be commercially useful to Ireland. Mr. Chamberlain was very 
anxious that I should not believe he held the same views as his brother Joseph. 
He was and had always been a Liberal and a home ruler, and he contributed a 
large sum annually to the Liberal Party funds. 

These facts, as I told him, I already knew. I then inquired, that understanding 
as he did the secret attitude of English Government toward any scheme to 
seriously develop Ireland industrially, whether Kynoch's would face the Gov- 
ernment opposition and carry out its scheme, or attempt to do so. 

GOVERNMENT THREATS TO KTNOCH'S. 

To this Mr. Chamberlain indirectly replied by detailing the history of the 
Kynoch branch in Arklow and the efforts made by the government of Mr. Bal- 
four and the government of Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman to force the firm 
to shut down the branch. Finally, to compel Kynoch's to leave Ireland, Govern- 
ment contracts were removed. Mr. Chamberlain described a somewhat lively 
interview he had recently had with Mr. Herbert Gladstone, now Lord Glad- 
stone, in which that minister told him definitely that if the Arklow factory 
continued the Government would see that as little Government work as possible 
would be given to Kynoch's. On the other hand, the Government offered no 
objection to Kynoch's establishing themselves in " any part of the empire 
except Ireland," and the fullest support was offered to the Kynoch branch in 
South Africa. 

I inquired why Mr. Chamberlain came to the Sinn Feiners instead of to the 
parliamentary party, who were allies and were supposed to be the masters of 
the English Liberal Government. 

Mr. Chamberlain replied that he had gone to the parliamentary party; that 
the leaders know all that was taking place, but that they would do nothing 
except privately appeal to the Government. Mr. Redmond, Mr. Chamberlain 
said, was an amiable man, but he was putty in the hands of English ministers. 

PLANS FOR POTTERY ABANDONED. 

A further interview developed Mr. Chamberlain's plan for the cooperation of 
Sinn Fein. I inquired from him whether in return he would guarantee Kynoch's 
would proceed with their original plan for industrial development in Ireland. 
Whether, for instance, they would supply the means for initiating the great 
pottery industry of the southeast. 

Mr. Chamberlain hesitated, but finally replied he could not give a guaranty. 
The Government could hit Kynoch's in so many ways elsewhere that they 
could not as business men risk going on with the scheme. If there were home 
rule in the country, Kynoch's might risk it. I remarked that no measure of 
home rule which permitted Ireland to protect its industries would be passed 
by either Liberals or Tories. Mr. Chamberlain assented, but added that the 
Irish had political strength although they did not know how to use it to coerce 
ministers. However, the cooperation of Sinn Fein was not to be considered 
unless Kynoch's were prepared to go on with the original scheme, and thus 
this aspect of the matter ended. To save the factory at Arklow, however — 
the closing of which would mean the ruin of the town — we put Mr. Chamber- 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 77 

lain in communication with certain Irish business men, who afterwards at- 
tended a small meeting in the Shelbourne Hotel, as a result of which an 
arrangement was made which enabled the factory to be carried on without 
exposing Kynoch's to further boycotting by the English Government. 

I trust the gentlemen who know that " this is Ireland's war," and who 
demand a share in the making of munitions, will be comforted. 

Aethue Griffith. 

The British Government, foiled in 1907, has struck home at Arklow in 1918. 
The people of that town may take it that the man whom the chairman of 
Kynoch's described to us in 1907 as " putty in the hands of English ministers " 
is putty in their hands still, and that his function is to make them agree to 
die industrially by stages. 

Mr. Gallagher. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, quite a number of 
men have been here since yesterday morning representing organiza- 
tions throughout the country. They are here to go on record. I 
want your permission to have them state whom they represent and 
what, and to briefly express their views. 

The Chairman. Will you call the names? 

Mr. Gallagher. Mr. Richard Dwyer, of Boston, Mass, represent- 
ing the Ancient Order of Hibernians. 

Mr. Dwyer. Mr. Chairman, I represent 30,000 citizens of Massa- 
chusetts who have given 5,000 of their boys that America might se- 
cure democracy all over the world. I speak not only for the men and 
women of Irish blood of Massachusetts, but I feel I speak also for 
the whole citizenship of Massachusetts, because, not very long ago, 
the Legislature of Massachusetts unanimously passed a resolution 
demanding independence for Ireland. 

The point has been made here of sectarian differences. The Catho- 
lic ancestry of the leading Irish people and the protestant ancestry 
of President McKinley both suffered for the same cause. 

STATEMENT OF MR. PATRICK 0'HAGERTY, OF SPRINGFIELD, 

MASS. 

Mr. O'Hagertt. On July 28. 1775, the American Congress drafted 
an appeal and presented it to the people of Ireland which began in 
this way : " We desire the good opinion of the virtuous and humane." 
Gentlemen, you know the answer which the people of Ireland gave to 
that appeal. 

Ireland appeals to you through her children who are in exile, 
through the leaders of her race who are unlawfully imprisoned in 
England, and she appeals to you in the same way that your ancestors 
appealed to her. 

STATEMENT OF MR. JOHN J. HEARN, OF WESTFIELD, MASS. 

Mr. Hearn. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, I 
come from Representative Treadway's district, and I feel I speak 
the sentiments of practically everybody in western Massachusetts 
favoring this resolution. The question is: Can America do justice 
to herself unless she favors it? We entered this conflict and enun- 
ciated our principles. These principles were in favor of liberty 
throughout the world, in favor of self-determination for all small 
nations, and this most assuredly includes Ireland. Can we to-day 



78 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

allow that question to stand and not be properly taken care of by 
our representatives at the peace conference? I believe that action is 
absolutely necessary. I thank you. 

STATEMENT OF MR. HUMPHREY O'SULLIVAN, OF LOWELL, MASS. 

Mr. O'Sullivan. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, 
I came from Lowell, Mass., the home of the great American, Cardinal 
O'Connell, and well known as the Spindle City of America. At a 
great gathering held in Lowell, Mass., last week there were assembled 
the representatives of all the Irish societies of the city. It was a 
tremendously large meeting, and at that meeting resolutions were 
passed in favor of self-determination for Ireland, and those reso- 
lutions have been forwarded to the Congressman of the fifth district, 
the Hon. John Jacob Rogers, a member of your committee. 

Mr. Rogers. May I add that I had the pleasure of inserting those 
resolutions in the Record in full yesterday morning? 

Mr. O'Sullivan. I thank you. 

I am here at the request of the United Irish Societies of Lowell, 
Mass., to voice their sentiments on behalf of self-determination for 
Ireland. The city of Lowell has a population of 125,000 people. 
Sixty-five per cent of that population is Catholic. It is an industrial 
city, and you can count 45 different nationalities among its inhabi- 
tants. 

I have been commissioned to come before you and impress upon 
you their attitude on the momentous question now before you for 
consideration. 

As a member of Typographical Union No. 310, of Lowell, I feel 
that I am at liberty to speak for the labor organizations of that 
industrial city. 

As a merchant and one affiliated with the financial interests of the 
city, and State of Massachusetts, I feel also at liberty to speak for 
them, for it is my solemn opinion that in the great State of Massa- 
chusetts an overwhelming majority of its citizens are in favor of 
giving a square deal to Ireland in this crisis. 

I am here to add the worth and weight of my commendation to the 
resolution that has been passed and presented by our Congressman, 
and I was very much shocked and annoyed just a while ago to hear 
Mr. Fox make the statement that the men who are here in favor of 
this resolution were pro-German. I will ask Mr. Fox if he still be- 
lieves what he said a moment ago, that the people who are advocating 
this resolution are pro-German. 

Mr. Fox. I believe all who are members of the Ancient Order of 
Hibernians are pro-German. 

Mr. O'Sullivan. That is not the question. You stated that those 
men who are here are pro-German. Isn't that so, Mr. Chairman? 

The Chairman. I can't pass on that. You ask him the question 
and let him answer it. 

Mr. O'Sullivan. If you said that these men who are here to-day 
in favor of this resolution are pro-German, you are falsifying. 

Mr. Fox. That is all right, sir. 

Mr. O'Sullivan. I appeal to my Congressman, the Hon. John 
Jacob Rogers, that it is a fact that I am and have been pro-ally since 
the drop of the hat. [Applause.] 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 79 

Mr. Rogers. There is no question about that with anyone who 
knows you. 

Mr. O'SuixrvAN. My sympathies were with the French in the con- 
flict of 1870. and my sympathies have so continued down to the recent 
conflict. My sympathies were with the French in 1914, but if the Eng- 
lish joined with the French I couldn't change my attitude, because I 
knew that eventually the American Xation would be drawn into the 
conflict. I was pro-ally from the drop of the hat. Therefore, Mr. Fox, 
I will not let you get away from here with that statement uncontra- 
dicted, and I want to tell you further, sir. that there is no one that 
has appeared here in favor of these resolutions who has done half as 
much good for them as you have. [Applause.] 

In 1914 home rule for Ireland was passed over the veto of the 
House of Lords, but it has not been put in operation yet; but in 
February, 1918, if some wise prophet had told Lloyd George that 
victory of the allies was obtainable on November 11 of that year, 
provided he gave complete independence to Ireland, he would wel- 
come the offer as an opportunity to save England from ruin and de- 
feat. The present moment is ominous with possibilities. Until 
America entered the conflict on the side of the allies they were beaten ; 
they were only waiting for the count. Each nation was asking the 
other : " What are you fighting for?" And it remained for our great 
President to formulate a platform broad, wide, and strong enough 
and appealing enough to the hearts of all the peoples of the world to 
make the issue inspiring — to make the world free for democracy. 

He did more. He took the side of the oppressed peoples of the 
world. He drove a wedge between autocracy and democracy and 
told the oppressed of all nations that the success of the allies' cause 
meant the freedom and " self-determination " of the small nations of 
the world, and England and the allies said " Yes." 

You will remember that among the 14 articles promulgated by 
our great President one was for the freedom of the seas, and you 
will notice that England insists upon the right of search, the right 
of embargo, and the right of blockade. When those 14 points 
were announced, why didn't she take this attitude on them? In my 
opinion upon the question of " self-determination " for Ireland she 
will tell you that the Irish people can decide what form of govern- 
ment they want, but in the process a few intellectuals in Ulster must 
not be coerced, and why ? Is it because they fear the domination of 
Catholic Ireland? The city of Lowell, Mass., as I have already said, 
is 65 per cent Catholic, yet four-fifths of the city government is 
Protestant, and its entire school board. Surely, this would not indi- 
cate intolerance on the part of the Catholics. 

I can not dismiss this question without taking notice of the number 
of men contributed and the valor of Irish soldiers in the English 
service. I desire to emphasize the figures given by Miss Hughes, 
and when to these numbers are added the Irishmen who joined the 
forces from Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and Canada — all 
in face of the fact that England withheld from Ireland the freedom 
she claimed for Belgium and the other small nations — Ireland did 
her share and more than her share in the war. 

I thank you gentlemen for your patient hearing, and wish you 
success. 



80 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

Mr. Sabath. There are several Members of Congress who intro- 
duced resolutions on the subject who requested us to be heard, and 
there are also other Members who desire to speak, and I wish to 
know "whether any arrangement of time has been allotted to them 
or are we giving all of the time to the delegations that are here, and 
will we give additional time to some others who wish to be heard at 
some future time ? 

The Chairman. As far as I was concerned I promised Miss Eankin 
to give her an opportunity to be heard. 

Mr. Sabath. There is Mr. Lundeen, who has a resolution on the 
subject who also desires to be heard, and then there is my colleague, 
Mr. John W. Rainey, who was preparing a resolution on this sub- 
ject but didn't have time to introduce it, is here. 

Mr. Gallagher. Mr. Rainey will be called on later. 

STATEMENT OF MR. EDWARD RYAN OF SYRACUSE. 

Mr. Ryan. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee: I 
will simply content myself with stating that I am here to-day as 
the representative of 65,000 men, members of the Catholic Mutual 
Benefit Association. We have 5,000 men bearing arms; that they 
were not shirking is evidenced by the fact that, up to the present, 
time, we have been called upon or notified of 125 deaths fighting in 
the cause of human liberty. 

I ask this committee, on behalf of the young men who are over 
there and on behalf of the members who are here at home and who 
have been supporting the Government every minute of their lives, 
asking you representatives of the American people to remember the 
grand old Declaration of Independence that declared and set forth 
to the world the principle that all men were created free and equal. 
We wish you to apply that principle now to the case of Ireland. 
We ask you not to make an exception of her. We ask you to couple 
Ireland with all those other downtrodden small nations of Europe, 
and say that we mean Ireland as well as we mean Poland, or Ukraine, 
or any of the countries. 

This morning, before coming up to this committee room, I wan- 
dered over into the house where President Lincoln died, and in look- 
ing around saw a card with this inscription which to my mind should 
typify the position of America : " I must stand with everybody that 
is right, stand with him while he is right, and part with him when 
he goes wrong." 

LETTER FROM JUSTICE DANIEL F. COHALAN. 

The chairman of the committee presented the following letter 
from Justice Daniel F. Cohalan, New York, and directed that it be 
made a part of the record : 

Supreme Court, 
Chambees Street, 
New York, December 11, 1918. 
Dear Mr, Flood : I am sorry that because of illness it will not be possible for 
me to appear before your committee to-morrow to advocate the adoption of the 
Gallagher resolution in favor of the application of the doctrine of self-determi- 
nation to Ireland. I know of no duty which a citizen owes to his country at 
the present hour transcending the importance of contributing in every possible 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 81 

way to the making of a just and permanent peace to the end that we may put 
a stop to wars and that the world may never again have to endure such agony 
and suffering as it has just undergone. 

Whether such a thing is possible is questioned by many thoughtful students 
of history, but at least no effort should be spared by those who speak with the 
voice of authority at the peace conference to end the old quarrels which have 
been vexing mankind and to make a real peace and not simply a patchwork of 
selfish interests such as was made by the Congress of Vienna. No greater 
service could be done to the general cause of humanity than to end the age- 
long quarrel between Ireland and England, because its effects are not local or 
even national, but have spread all over the world and have lasted not for years 
but for generations and for centuries. 

There is no country with which America has closer or more intimate ties of 
blood and sympathy than Ireland, and no race which has contributed more in 
war and peace to our service and development. Ireland has done far more even 
than France for the cause of American liberty and American growth, and we 
have just shown in the case of France that we are a grateful people and seek 
rather than avoid the payment of any debt of gratitude which we owe. 

Moreover, the statesman who settles the Irish question — and no settlement 
which does not meet the view of the majority of the people of Ireland will be 
a real settlement — will have done more for England than her greatest statesman 
has been able to do. England has tried every means of settling the question 
except the real one of justice, and has failed absolutely and completely, as 
Lloyd-George now confesses. 

Such talk as that of Winston Churchill to-day about Irishmen failing to agree 
is futile and beside the point. There is no country in the world in which there 
is unanimity on political or economic questions, and there is more political 
agreement in Ireland among the great majority of the people than there is 
either in America or England. 

England has made many promises during this war, in her hours of difficulty, 
about her wishes to bring freedom to the small nations and to oppressed peo- 
ples. It will not become her and will not in the long run serve her real inter- 
ests for her to repudiate them now that, with the help of America — and that 
was concededly essential — she has won the war. 

The elections in Ireland on Saturday next will undoubtedly show that even 
with a great army of occupation in possession England can not coerce the will 
of the people of Ireland. They have fought the fight for freedom for centuries, 
and will undoubtedly continue it until they attain their entire freedom. 

Let us, now that it is within our power to do so, insist upon having the Presi- 
dent's doctrine of self-determination apply to the case of Ireland as well as to 
the cases of all the other suffering peoples of Europe, and the result will be a 
just and durable peace — one that will benefit mankind, help England as no 
other act will, and further ennoble the name of America among the benefactors 
of humanity and the moral leader of the world. 
Sincerely yours, 

Daniel F. Cohalan, Justice. 

STATEMENT OF MR. JOHN GRAHAM, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO. 

Mr. Graham. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, I 
am here representing the Mayo Men's Association and other Irish 
organizations of the city of Cleveland, Ohio ; also the Irish- American 
Eepublican League of Cuyahoga County, Ohio. The gentleman op- 
posing our cause here. Prof. George L. Fox, who says he represents 
himself but who, I think, is representing England, says the Irish 
in America are pro-German. This I take as an insult to the good 
Irish-Americans who gave their all — money and men — to help Uncle 
Sam to crush tyranny and, as our good President Wilson said, "to 
make this world a safe place to live in." Now, then, gentlemen, I 
am also here representing 300 Irishmen who came over from Ireland 
rather than fight for England after England refused them the 
measure of home rule she had promised them. And this is what I 
H. Doc. 1832. 65-3 6 



82 THE IEISH QUESTION". 

am doubly proud to tell you : That I assisted in drafting a letter to 
our President and Secretary of War on behalf of these 300 young 
Irishmen, who offered their services to Uncle Sam on the condition 
that they be made American citizens. The privilege was granted 
through our President and your honorable Congress, and to-day the 
800 are in the American Army and fought for the freedom of small 
nations, Ireland included. Has Prof. Fox done as much for America ? 

Mr. Gallagher. I have some resolutions which I would like to go 
into the record. 

The Chairman. Let them go in. 

Mr. Gallagher (reading) : 

Mr. Chairman : Not wishing to expend time in urging arguments which have 
been ably proposed already, permit us simply to state that a resolution similar 
in scope to the one here under discussion will be presented next Sunday even- 
ing, December 15, at a mass meeting in Pittsburgh. The mayor and ex-mayor 
and members of the city council are to be present, and some of them will speak 
in favor of the resolution. 

We are authorized, in the unavoidable absence of the delegate representing 
the labor organizations of Pittsburgh and western Pennsylvania, to state that 
similar resolutions have been passed by their general committee as well as 
various local divisions. 

Patrick F. Fitzgerald. 
Representing United Irish Societies of Pittsburgh, Pa: 
Patrick Cronin, 
Representing Duquesne University of Pittsburgh. 

STATEMENT OF WILLIAM J. CARY, A MEMBER OF CONGRESS 
FROM WISCONSIN. 

Mr. Cary. Mr. Chairman, I am glad to voice my earnest approval 
of these resolutions and to express the sincere hope that the committee 
may report them favorably. I have introduced similar resolutions at 
former sessions of Congress, but am only too pleased to support my 
colleague, Mr. Gallagher, in any movement that shall win for Ire- 
land the right to be considered at the peace table. 

In the name of democracy, in the name of humanity, in the name 
of America, as well as in the name of Ireland, let us give to the peo- 
ple of Ireland that inalienable right of self-determination ; that 
God-given privilege of self-government which has been the guiding 
and sustaining ideal of the American people from the day the first 
shot for liberty was fired at Lexington down to the last gallant bat- 
tle of the boys in France for the cause of human freedom. 

STATEMENT OF REV. JOHN F. FENLON, D. D., PRESIDENT OF 
DIVINITY COLLEGE, CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY, WASHINGTON, 
D. C. 

I have been requested by the Irish societies of Montana and by 
men of Irish blood in that State to speak for them before this com- 
mittee on behalf of Mr. Gallagher's resolution. These men are citi- 
zens of the United States and their sons and brothers form a very 
large proportion of Montana's quota in our fighting forces. Their 
views on the Irish question are shared by nearly all their fellow 
citizens. One evidence of this, familiar to the gentlemen of this com- 
mittee, is the resolution introduced into Congress by the Montana 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 83 

Representative, Miss Rankin, which is to the same effect as Mr. 
Gallagher's. Miss Rankin's resolution, I believe, voices the senti- 
ment of all Montana. 

The first point I would make, gentlemen, is that Congress may 
with propriety pass this resolution. The principle of it is simply 
the foundation of just government in America, and, according to 
our American ideas, of all just government; namely, that govern- 
ments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed. 
It is a principle that no loyal American can deny with any con- 
sistency. That the principle ought to be applied to Ireland, as a 
distinct nation capable of self-government, is a propositon which 
no American can fairly controvert on grounds of logic or facts. 
Assuming this for the moment as true, we realize that the only ques- 
tion that can be in the minds of this committee is : Can it with pro- 
priety recommend this resolution to the House and can the House 
of Representatives with propriety pass it? The only objections, I 
suppose, are that it might be considered a matter of delicacy regard- 
ing our associate in the war, Great Britain, and that it might em- 
barrass our delegates at the peace congress. It is undoubtedly a 
matter of delicacy, but when the rights of a nation are at stake, 
delicacy must yield to the prime consideration, which is justice. A 
false delicacy should not hinder America from speaking for justice 
to Ireland, merely because that justice must come from our associate 
in war. If Prussia had been the master and oppressor, we should 
not hesitate to demand justice for Ireland; why should we hesitate 
because it is England? Are the powers that fought for justice — 
and won — expected henceforth to be less just than those that fought 
against it — and lost? Can not England be expected to do justice 
voluntarily, as Germany and Austria both have to do it under force? 
England has declared repeatedly that she is fighting for the rights of 
small nations. Let us take her at her word and declare the satisfac- 
tion and joy with which all America will see her recognize Ireland's 
right to self-determination. All true democrats in England, and 
they are millions, will approve our resolution. 

Furthermore, gentlemen, millions of our citizens feel very strongly 
that America has the duty of speaking for Ireland at the peace con- 
ference. It is the cause of justice to a whole people, and who will 
speak for Ireland if we do not? Why should the national aspira- 
tions of Ireland alone be ignored at the peace conference? So pre- 
posterous and so unjust and so discriminatory would be the ignoring 
of Ireland's cause that it is impossible to believe that President Wil- 
son will neglect to speak for it and to fight for it. The American 
Congress can not, in justice to itself, keep silent. It is impossible to 
be neutral in such a matter. If you are not for the cause of Ireland, 
you are against it; for to refuse to act is to acquiesce in the continu- 
ance of the injustice to Ireland. The honor of ourselves and of the 
allies is strictly involved in the just settlement of this question. To 
ignore it, gentlemen, is to make a mockery of the allied cause. We 
at least must do our part, not in a merely formal manner but with all 
strength, out of an intense love for justice. Then our honor will be» 
unsullied, and if we fail, the shame will rest on England. 

Some may think it imprudent to pass this resolution. They may 
fear that it will do more harm than good. Ireland and the friends 



84 THE IRISH QUESTION". 

of Ireland are willing to run the risk. These timid men underesti- 
mate the influence of American opinion. We are not sanguine of 
converting Balfour, Bonar Law, and Carson, but the influence of 
American opinion, proclaimed by the American Congress, will un- 
questionably strengthen democratic opinion in Great Britain. A 
declaration like this, breathing America's sincerity, courage, and love 
of justice, will encourage all liberty-loving and fair-minded English- 
men, and their number is legion. 

I have been taking for granted, gentlemen, that the justice of Ire- 
land's cause is evident. What proof can it need for any mind imbued 
with American principles? Ireland is a distinct nation, distinct in 
race, history, tradition, mental gifts, temperament, geographical 
position — in everything that goes to make a nation. She demands, 
with every nation that has the spirit of free men, the right to be 
herself and to govern herself and to shape her own destinies. The 
English experiment has lasted for centuries and has been a tragic 
failure and a shame. It is folly to continue the experiment longer, 
and a crime as well. It is Ireland's turn now. But let not America 
make the same mistake which even some of the best Englishmen have 
made, of thinking that economic prosperity will satisfy the Irish 
people. Ireland demands now the right to live her own life apart 
from England and to develop her own soul, whether or not some tie 
still binds her to the British Empire. We are ourselves partly re- 
sponsible for this, for we have preached Sinn Fein to the whole 
world, and fanned the flame of Irish Sinn Fein. President Wilson's 
principles, so luminously and forcibly expounded, are Sinn Fein, pure 
and adulterated. Ireland believes in the sincerity of President Wil- 
son and of America. To fail her would be treason to the cause of 
justice and liberty. 

The only objection to Ireland's right that is worth a moment's 
thought is the Ulster difficulty. Two things I wish to say. First, 
that a small section of Ireland can not be allowed forever to thwart 
the will of the great majority of Irishmen. No country can be 
governed on the principle of requiring unanimity. When Lloyd 
George declares Ulster will never be coerced, he abandons the prin- 
ciple of majority rule and deliberately encourages Ulster, or rather 
one part of Ulster, in her recalcitrant attitude. The recalcitrant part 
of Ulster will yield and make the best of it when it knows it has to. 

The other word I would say in regard to Ulster concerns the 
proposal of some Ulstermen to allow secession of a portion of Ulster. 
It is enough to quote the chairman of the Irish convention, Sir 
Horace Plunkett, who says the time has gone by " when any other 
section of the Irish people would accept the partition of their coun- 
try even as a temporary expedient." Ireland will not abandon her 
ideal of one nation, free and undivided, in which all Irishmen, with- 
out distinction of creed and on a footing of equality, unite in the 
service of Ireland. 

The fear of religious intolerance from a dominant Catholic ma- 
jority is hardly more than a specter conjured up by politicians. It 
is believed in only by the ignorant and the fanatical. Many of 
Ireland's best loved leaders have been Protestants, and Irish Cath- 
olics could never be so base as to inflict any injustice upon the 
brethren of these men. If you will inquire into the matter you will 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 85 

discover that no people knows better how to discriminate between 
religion and politics than the Catholic people of Ireland. They 
showed in the Irish convention, and on every occasion, that they are 
willing to give all possible guaranties to insure the religious freedom 
and equality of Irish Protestants. Through centuries of bitter 
persecution, Irish Catholics have learned the value of religious free- 
dom and they hold the crime of religious persecution in deep ab- 
horrence. The fear of it is not seriously entertained by any states- 
man of the British Isles. 

There is another and a very different point of view, gentlemen, 
which I beg to put before you. A just settlement of the Irish ques- 
tion is necessary for right and cordial relations in the future between 
England and the United States. There is no use in blinking the fact 
that there is a great amount of unfriendly feeling toward England 
among our countrymen. This is by no means confined to men of 
Irish and German descent. It is quite as keen among men of English 
descent. There is nothing more desirable, however, in international 
relations than a warm and firm friendship between the two branches 
of English-speaking people ; and nothing would be more disastrous 
than antagonism between these two nations. On their continued 
good relations depends in great measure the future peace of the 
world with all the blessings to humanity which it will bring. Now, 
it is the part of American statesmanship to look far ahead and to 
remove anything that might endanger cordial relations between Eng- 
land and America. This is especially so as there is bound to be in- 
tense commercial rivalry between these two great powers. Hitherto, 
in recent times, the rivalry was chiefly between England and Ger- 
many; now, and for many decades to come, this rivalry will be 
between England and America. We have built a vast fleet of mer- 
chant marine which we intend to expand year by year. Eesponsible 
leaders have declared also for the policy of a large navy to defend 
our merchant marine and our long coast line. This is a prospect that 
England can not view with entire equanimity ; and on our part it is 
commonly felt that we have no power to fear except the power of 
the British Navy. This is bound to create a delicate situation. It is 
no chimerical fear and it may one day lead us to the verge of war. It 
is our duty, therefore, to promote such a feeling among our people 
as will render them friendly toward England and remove as far as 
possible the danger of such a disastrous war. 

Now if England fails to do justice to Ireland and exhibits at the 
peace congress the disposition to domineer and to grab which has too 
often characterized her, there is no doubt whatever that feeling against 
her in this country will become very bitter and intense. She can 
soften all this if she acts with a sense of justice and with some mag- 
nanimity. This is what is desired by the best element of England, 
which is very large, and though it is not dominant now, the future 
belongs to it. Our duty is to help it along, to encourage it. 

It is well to remember that America can no longer say to her 
children that they have no right to make a European question a 
matter of domestic politics. If Americans have sent their sons and 
brothers to shed their blood for the freedom of European nations, 
they will claim the right to speak for that freedom. They will 
demand that American statesmen support the just and impartial 



86 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

application of the principle of self-determination to European na- 
tions. Men of Irish race who volunteered so freely to fight in this 
cause are not the men to keep quiet if justice is denied to the Euro- 
pean nation in which they are most interested. The Irish question, 
if unsettled, will surely become a burning question of American 
politics, and it is not beyond probability that parties may stand 
or fall by their fidelity to the just application of this principle to 
Ireland. 

At the same time we must recognize that the injection of European 
issues into American politics is very undesirable. They should all 
be eliminated. But the way to eliminate them is to settle the griev- 
ances that keep them alive. Then, undistracted by such foreign issues, 
all Americans will bend all their efforts to make themselves one 
homogeneous people, united for the welfare of our common country. 

The Chairman. Some members of the committee would like to 
hear from Dr. McCartan. 

STATEMENT OF DR. PATRICK McCARTAN, OF COUNTY TYRONE, 
ULSTER, MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT, KINGS COUNTY, IRISH 
ENVOY. 

Dr. McCartan. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, 
I could go into great detail in telling what Ireland has done for the 
allied cause, but our demand for independence is not based on any- 
thing we have done or refused to do. We are asking for justice 
and nothing more. We are asking for nothing that is not our own. 
We are asking for no favors from England. 

In the days of Wolfe Tone, when he approached the French Gov- 
ernment for aid in securing Irish independence, that Government 
suggested Ireland would get Jamaica as indemnity. Ireland asks 
no indemnity. She merely asks England to get out of Ireland and 
leave it to the Irish. 

A great deal has been said about Protestants and Catholics in 
Ulster. That is one of the false pleas that England advances for 
remaining in Ireland. 

We know no Catholic and no Protestant in Ireland, just as we 
do not know them in the United States. There is no bigotry in 
Ireland, such as is stated by British propagandists and described 
by English agents. 

I am an Ulster man and I know Ulster. I was born and lived in 
pne of the Ulster counties that was to be excluded from the juris- 
diction of Ireland, but that same county was this year put under 
martial law because of its strong national feeling. 

When the Ulster volunteers were arming I helped them, because 
I knew the arms would not be used against us. 

When I helped the Irish volunteers to arm I knew that those arms 
would not be turned against their fellow countrymen. 

When, for seven weeks in 1916, I was in hiding from the British 
agents because of my part in the Easter revolution, it was a Prot- 
estant family in Ulster that sheltered me. 

As Miss Hughes has pointed out to you, our flag represents a union 
of all the people of Ireland. It was designed by the Protestant 
leader, Wolfe Tone. With reference to Wolfe Tone I would make 
this further statement, which no Irish Catholic will question and 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 87 

which I will ask the Catholic priests here to verify, that there is not, 
in the calendar of saints, any names clearer to the hearts of the Irish 
Catholic people than the names of the Irish Protestant saints and 
martyrs, Wolfe Tone, Robert Emmet, Fitzgerald, and the rest. 

Self-determination, in the form of a plebiscite, in which the adult 
manhood and womanhood of Ireland would vote, would mean leav- 
ing to the Irish people themselves the decision as to the form and 
character of the government they want to live under. That, in my 
opinion, would carry out the American ideal of government and 
would be in accord with the letter and spirit of President Wilson's 
various declarations as to America's object in the war. 

Those declarations were at least tacitly accepted by the allied gov- 
ernments and were hailed in England, both in the speeches of re- 
sponsible ministers and articles in the leading newspapers, as the 
principles for which the war was being fought. 

There was not a word of dissent, in England or in America, from 
the principle of self-determination until the war was over, until 
the decisive victory, which could not have been won without Ameri- 
can help, arriving in the nick of time, had turned the tide. Coming 
after the war has been won, the objections at both sides of the Atlan- 
tic would place the United States in a false position in which, we 
are convinced, the American people will not consent to have, their 
Government placed. 

So long as Ireland remains under the heel of England — and that 
is an exact description of the present position — she will remain an 
international problem and a menace to the world's peace. The whole 
civilized world, therefore, is concerned in seeing the Irish question 
permanently settled, and no country in the world is more intimately 
concerned in its settlement than is the United States. 

STATEMENT OF MR. DIARMUID LYNCH, OF NEW YORK. 

Mr. Lynch. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, I appear not only as an 
American citizen and national secretary of the Friends of Irish Free- 
dom, a federation of societies throughout the various States of the 
Union, having in their ranks citizens descended from many races, as 
well as those of Irish blood, but also as one of the men returned un- 
opposed last week on the Sinn Fein or Irish Republic platform in 
Ireland. 

It is well that America should understand the real present-day 
Irish situation. And I speak of it as of my own personal knowledge, 
having fought in the Irish revolution of 1916, for which I was sen- 
tenced to be shot by the British Government. This sentence was 
commuted to 10 years' penal servitude, and I have had personal ex- 
perience in British convict prisons. 

Incontestable facts have been placed before you concerning the bad 
rule of England in Ireland, but what Ireland most objects to is 
foreign rule. 

Ireland has her back to the wall and looks the whole world square 
in the face. She will accept no measure of devolution from the 
British Parliament, no matter how designated. She will be satisfied 
only with a settlement secured in accordance with the wishes of her 
own people — expressed through a plebescite of her entire adult popu- 
lation — without any restriction whatsoever. 



88 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

The Chairman. Does that include women? 

Mr. Lynch. Yes, sir. 

The Chairman. Of what age? 

Mr. Lynch. Over 21, I should say. 

Mr. Rogers. Would you say that the vote of the men alone would 
be satisfactory? 

Mr. Lynch. No; the Sinn Fein party in Ireland is committed to 
the policy that women are entitled to equal rights with men in the 
government of Ireland. 

The case of Ireland was drawn up for presentation to the peace 
conference by Irish leaders most competent to write and present it; 
but, gentlemen, each and every one of these leaders is to-day im- 
prisoned in England. These men and women, leaders of the Irish 
people, and hundreds of their principal supporters, are held in cus- 
tody of England, without charges legally preferred against them, 
and are denied trial. Lord Wimborne, lord lieutenant of Ireland at 
the time when the alleged acts for which they are imprisoned are said 
to have been committed, stated in the British Parliament that he, the 
head of the British Government in Ireland, had no evidence to sus- 
tain a charge. 

Ireland is shut off from the world and prohibited by the civil, 
naval, and military power of England from sending her representa- 
tives direct to Versailles, there to present her case to the peace con- 
ference and to endeavor to secure the recognition of her independence. 

Notwithstanding all that Ireland has suffered at the hands of 
England, the suspension of the exercise of her sovereign will, which 
she has never surrendered, the domination of her people by military 
and naval force, the burdens of overtaxation, the tragic wiping out 
of her popluation, the crushing of her industries, the suppression of 
her merchant marine, the campaign of calumny to which she has 
been subjected, the falsification of her history, her ideals and her 
aspirations — notwithstanding all this, Ireland asks only that her 
wrongs shall cease here and now, that right be substituted for might, 
and that she be allowed to work out her own national destiny, " free 
as the Great God made her." Gentlemen, in view of the arguments 
advanced in Ireland's behalf, and relying on your historical knowl- 
edge of Ireland's national rights and on the spirit of genuine Ameri- 
can justice, which I am sure animates you, I am happy to feel that 
this resolution introduced by Mr. Gallagher will be reported favor- 
ably to Congress and that Congress will stand by the application of 
the principles enunciated by President Wilson and the fathers of our 
country, and secure the fulfilment of Ireland's national aspirations. 

Mr. Goodwin. Did I understand you to say that you had been 
elected a member of Parliament? 

Mr. Lynch. I have not been in Ireland since last May but under- 
stand that, in my absence, I was nominated, and that there were no 
opposing nominations. 

Mr. Goodwin. Are you an American citizen? 

Mr. Lynch. I am an American citizen. 

Mr. Goodwin. Irish citizenship is not a prerequisite to election to 
Parliament? 

Mr. Lynch. In the present position of Ireland no such question 
arises. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 89 

The policy of the Sinn Fein party is that none of its members shall 
sit in the British Parliament or take any oath of allegiance to the 
British Crown. The Sinn Fein party is pledged to " deny the right 
and oppose the will of the British Parliament and the British Crown, 
or any other foreign Government, to legislate for Ireland." 

Mr. Cooper. Will you please give us a definition of Sinn Fein ? 

Mr. Lynck. I am glad to do so, as it is a term widely misunder- 
stood in America. Sinn Fein simply means " we ourselves " — a 
synonym for self-reliance. Every good American, as such, is a 
thorough supporter of the Sinn Fein principle. 

Mr. Sabath. I would like to ask the gentleman a question. He 
being elected to the new Parliament without any opposition, with 21 
others, I take it for granted that he is in position to know what form 
of Government they will have there if self-determination is granted, 
and whether the Sinn Fein party and people of Ireland believe in 
personal and religious freedom? 

Mr. Lynch. The platform of the Sinn Fein party is for an Irish 
Republic, and, in the proclamation of the Irish Republic on Easter 
Monday, 1916, the fullest measure of religious freedom was guar- 
anteed to every person in Ireland. Notwithstanding the fact that 
the whole machinery at the coming election is in the hands of the 
British Government, that they will have control of the ballots from 
the 14th of December to the 28th of December, I believe that the 
people will declare in favor of an Irish Republic. 

Mr. Cooper. As we all know, Great Britain has no written con- 
stitution — Parliament is supreme. This Republic has a written 
constitution — the organic law of the Republic — subject to amend- 
ment, but the amendment of which is difficult. It has what amounts 
to a bill of rights, guaranteeing personal and political liberty. Will 
that form of government which you think will be installed in free 
Ireland have a written constitution? 

Mr. Lynch. Most assuredly. I am confident that the Irish Parlia- 
ment would at the earliest moment possible draft and adopt a written 
constitution and include in it the fullest guaranties for personal and 
religious liberty. 

Mr. Tague. In what way do the Irish people desire to express their 
will on self-determination? 

Mr. Lynch. Under the present election conditions it is not pos- 
sible for the Irish people to fully show where they stand. The 
leaders of the Sinn Fein Party are imprisoned in England, as 
already stated, and this letter, which I desire inserted in the record, 
will explain other conditions. The letter is as follows : 

Dublin, November 20, 1918. 
To the Editor of the " Irish Independent," Dublin. 

Sir : I desire to call public attention to the fact that the Government already 
has arrested, without charge and in succession, three Sinn Fein Directors of 
Elections — 

(1) Mr. Sean Milroy, in Cavan, on May 17; 

(2) Mr. Daniel MacCarthy, in Dublin, in September; and 

(3) Mr. Robert O'Brennan at these offices to-day. 

Each arrest has naturally caused some disorganization, but the cause of 
Irish Independence will not be stayed or broken by such tyranny. Men have 
been, and will be, found who will fill the vacant places. 

It may, however, be of interest to Irish voters and to the world outside Ire- 
land to point out that, in addition to these assaults on the machinery by which 



90 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

Sinn Fein endeavors to secure Self-Determination at the coming General Elec- 
tion, the Government now detains in jail : 

(1) The President of Sinn Fein. 

(2) One of the two Vice-Presidents. 

(3) The two Treasurers. 

(4) The two Secretaries. 

(5) All but one or two of the members of the late Standing Committee, ex- 
cept those for whom warrants are issued, but not yet executed. 

(6) And if our candidates are elected at the coming General Election, thirty- 
four constituencies will be represented by men in jail, six by men evading 
arrest, four by men in the United States of America. 

(7) In addition, hundreds of workers, local election directors, agents, or- 
ganizers, etc., are detained, some without trial, and some on long sentences 
for " crimes " which even the English Government has only recently invented. 

(Signed) James O'Mara, 

Sinn Fein Director of Elections, Pro Tern. 

Mr. Tague. But, assuming that self-determination is granted 
them, what would be the procedure? 

Mr. Lynch. There should be a full register made of all the adult 
voters of Ireland and the voters then given liberty — without any 
restrictions imposed by England — to choose the exact form of gov- 
ernment they desire to live under. 

The Chairman. A representative doesn't necessarily represent 
the section he comes from ? He may come from any section ? You 
may have all of them from the north of Ireland or all of them from 
the south of Ireland? 

Mr. Lynch. That is true. A man may be nominated for a con- 
stituency, irrespective of his residence, but he must be elected by the 
voters of the constituency which he is to represent. 

Mr. Cooper. Let me say that in this country it isn't required that 
a Member of the House of Representatives shall be a resident of the 
district in which he 
which he is elected. 

Mr. Colum. You have asked, Mr. Chairman, can a person from 
any point of Ireland represent any given place in Ireland. The case 
of Sir Edward Carson, who was the leader of the Ulster party, is 
in point. He is a South-of-Ireland man, born in Cork, and prac- 
tices law in England. He is not a member for an Ulster constit- 
uency at all. He is one of the members for Dublin University. 
Dublin University has the privilege of returning two members of 
Parliament. The word "election" is a misnomer there, because 
Dublin University is a close corporation. It is a mere matter of 
nomination, and Sir Edward Carson is not, strictly speaking, a 
member for an Irish constituency at all. 

The Chairman. Does he reside in Ulster? 

Mr. Colum. No; he resides in England. 

The Chairman. Did he ever reside in Ulster? 

Mr. Colum. Never. 

Mr. Gallagher. The next speaker will be Miss Jeannette Rankin, 
Member of Congress from Montana. 

STATEMENT OF HON. JEANNETTE RANKIN, A MEMBER OF CON- 
GRESS FROM MONTANA. 

Miss Rankin. I introduced a resolution last January asking that 
the House of Representatives pass a resolution saying that this Gov- 
ernment recognize the right of Ireland to political independence, and 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 91 

that we count Ireland among those countries for whose freedom and 
democracy we are fighting. I have brought that resolution up to 
date by adding that we ask our representatives to present this resolu- 
tion. I do not ask that my resolution be passed instead of Mr. Gal- 
lagher's, but I merely wish to say that I still stand by that resolu- 
tion; that I feel the* people of America are the people who under- 
stand the feelings of the people in Ireland for their struggle for lib- 
erty and democracy, because we have had very much the same 
struggle ; and I simply feel that the women realize what this struggle 
means because of the struggle that they have gone through for lib- 
erty and democracy, and that we should help those who need our 
help. We realize what help meant to us when we were going through 
our struggle. 

I have some correspondence here that I would like to present to 
the committee, some telegrams and letters, asking the committee to 
pass this resolution. Here are some petitions from organizations and 
men and women over the country, and these other documents are 
merely letters saying that they are pleased that the resolution is before 
the committee. 

I do not ask the committee to print these last, but to take them 
under consideration. 

I have also a collection of the utterances of the President on the 
question of self-determination of small countries. It was after many 
of these utterances had been made that I introduced my resolution 
before, and I would like those to be printed with my remarks. I 
thank you. 

Public Utterances Made by President Wilson Relative to Self-determina- 
tion of Small Nations. 

extracts from address before congress, january 8, 1918. 

[Congressional Record, Jan. 8, 1918, p. 708.] 

* * * What we demand in this war * * * is that the world be made 
* * * safe for every peace-loving nation which, like our own, wishes to live 
its own life, determine its own institutions, be assured of justice and fair deal- 
ing by the other peoples of the world as against force and selfish aggression. 

* * * The program of the world's peace * * * is this : 
******* 

VII. Belgium, the whole world will agree, must be evacuated and restored, 
without any attempt to limit the sovereignty which she enjoys in common with 
all other free nations. * * * 

******* 

XI. * * * International guaranties of the political and economic independ- 
ence and territorial integrity of the several Balkan States should be entered 
into. 

XIII. An independent Polish State should be erected which should include 
the territories inhabited by indisputably Polish populations, which should be 
assured a free and secure access to the sea, and whose political and economic 
independence and territorial integrity should be guaranteed by international 
covenant. 

XIV. A general association of nations must be formed under specific cove- 
nants for the purpose of affording mutual guaranties of political independence 
and territorial integrity to great and small States alike. 

******* 

* * * An evident principle runs through the whole program I have out- 
lined. It is the principle of justice to all peoples and nationalities, and their 
right to live on equal terms of liberty and safety with one another, whether 
they be strong or weak. * * * 



92 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

EXTRACTS FROM ADDRESS BEFORE CONGRESS APR. 3, 1917. 
[The Washington Post, Apr. 3, 1917.] 

* * * We are glad, now that we see the facts with no veil of false pretense 
about them, to fight thus * * * for the rights of nations, great and small, 
and the privilege of men everywhere to choose their way of life and of obedi- 
ence. But the right is more precious than peace, and we shall fight for the 
things which we have always carried near our hearts — for democracy, for the 
right of those who submit to authority to have a voice in their own govern- 
ments, for the rights and liberty of small nations, for a universal dominion 
of right by such a concert of free peoples as shall bring peace and safety to all 
nations and make the world itself at last free. * * * 

EXTRACT FROM ADDRESS AT ARLINGTON, VA., MAY 30, 1916. 
[The Washington Post, May 31, 1916.] 

* * * I said * * * that one of the principles which America held dear 
was that small and weak States had as much right to their sovereignty and in- 
dependence as large and strong States * * * because strength and weakness 
have nothing to do with her principles. * * * 

EXTRACT FROM ADDRESS IN MUSIC HALL, CINCINNATI, OHIO, OCT. 26, 1916. 

[Cincinnati Inquirer, Oct. 27, 1916.] 

We are a great Nation, a powerful Nation; we could crush some other 
nations, if we choose; but our heart goes out to these helpless people. * * * 
America does not believe in the rights of small nations merely because they 
are small * * * but we believe in them because when we think of the suffer- 
ings of man kind we forget where political boundaries lie and say, "These 
people are of the flesh and blood of mankind, and America is made up out of 
the peoples of the world." What a fine future of distinction and glory is open 
for a people who by instinctive sympathy can interpret and stand for the rights 
of man everywhere. 

EXTRACT FROM ADDRESS BEFORE CONGRESS, FEB. 11, 1918. 

[Official Bulletin, Feb. 11, 1918, p. 2.] 

This war had its roots in the disregard of the rights of small nations and of 
nationalities which lacked the union and the force to make good their claim to 
determine their own allegiance and their own forms of political life. 

EXTRACTS FROM NOTE TO BELLIGERENTS SUGGESTING PEACE NEGOTIATIONS, DECEMBER 

18, 1916. 

[State Papers and Addresses, p. 346.] 

Each side desires to make the rights and privileges of weak peoples and small 
States as secure against aggression or denial in the future as the rights and 
privileges of the great and powerful States now at war. 

In the measures to be taken to secure the future peace of the world the people 
and Government of the United States are as vitally and as directly interested as 
the Governments now at war. Their interest, moreover, in the means to be 
adopted to relieve the smaller and weaker peoples of the world of the peril of 
wrong and violence is as quick and ardent as that of any other people or gov- 
ernment. They stand ready, and even eager, to cooperate in the accomplish- 
ment of these ends, when the war is over, with every influence and resource at 
their command. 

EXTRACTS FROM ADDRESS TO THE SENATE, JANUARY 22, 1917. 

[S, Doc. 685, 64th Cong., 2d sess.] 

The equality of nations, upon which peace must be founded if it is to last, 
must be an equality of rights ; the guaranties exchanged must neither recognize 
nor imply a difference between big nations and small, between those that are 



THE IBISH QUESTION. 93 

powerful and those that are weak. Right must be based upon the common 
strength, not upon the individual strength, of the nations upon whose concert 
peace will depend. 

I am proposing, as it were, that the nations should with one accord adopt the 
doctrine of President Monroe as the doctrine of the world — that no nation 
should seek to extend its policy over any other nation or people, but that every 
people should be left free to determine its own policy, its own way of develop- 
ment, unhindered, unthreatened, unafraid, the little along with the great and 
powerful. 

EXTEACTS FROM MESSAGE TO HIS HOLINESS BENEDICTUS XV, POPE, THROUGH SECRE- 
TARY OF STATE ROBERT LANSING, AUGUST 27, 1917. 

[Official Bulletin, Aug. 29, 1917, p. 4.] 

They believe that peace should rest upon the rights of people, not the rights 
of the government — the rights of people great or small, weak or powerful — their 
equal right to freedom and security and self-government and to a participation 
upon fair terms in the economic opportunities of the world. * * * 

We believe that the intolerable wrongs done in this war by the furious and 
brutal power of the Imperial German Government ought to be repaired, but not 
at the expense of the sovereignty of any people — rather a vindication of the 
sovereignty both of those that are weak and of those that are strong. 

EXTRACT FROM OFFICIAL BULLETIN, DECEMBER 3, 1917, PAGE 1, IN MESSAGE TO THE 
KING OF ROUMANIA. 

[Official Bulletin, Dec. 3, 1917, p. 1.] 

* * * In any final negotiations for peace it will use its constant efforts to 
see to it that the integrity of Roumania as a free and independent nation ia 
adequately safeguarded. 

EXTRACT FROM ADDRESS BEFORE CONGRESS, DECEMBER 4, 1917. 

[Official Bulletin, Dec. 4, 1917, p. 2.] 

The peace we make must remedy that wrong. It must deliver the once fair 
lands and happy peoples of Belgium and northern France from the Prussian 
conquest and the Prussian menace, but it must also deliver the peoples of 
Austria-Hungary, the peoples of the Balkans, and the peoples of Turkey, alike 
in Europe and in Asia, from the impudent and alien dominion of the Prussian 
military and commercial autocracy. 

EXTRACT FROM ADDRESS BEFORE CONGRESS, FEBRUARY 11, 1918. 

[Official Bulletin, Feb. 11, 1918, p. 3.] 

Peoples are not to be handed about from one sovereignty to another by an 
international conference or an understanding between rivals and antagonists. 
National aspirations must be respected ; peoples may now be dominated and 
governed only by their own consent. " Self-determination " is not a mere 
phrase. * * * 

EXTRACT FROM ADDRESS BEFORE NEW CITIZENS' ALLIANCE, CHICAGO, OCTOBER 19, 1916. 
[New York Times, Oct 20, 1916.] 
Let us stand by the little nations that need to be stood by. * * * 

EXTRACT FROM ADDRESS BEFORE LEAGUE TO ENFORCE PEACE, WASHINGTON, D. O., 
MAY 27, 1916. 

[The Washington Post, May 28, 1916.] 

We believe these fundamental things: * * * Second, that the small 
States of the world have a right to enjoy the same respect for their sover- 
eignty and * * * territorial integrity. * * * 



94 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

STATEMENT OF MR. THOMAS J. McNAMARA, OF ST. LOUIS, MO. 

Mr. McNamara. I represent the Building and Trade Council of 
St. Louis, Mo. It is a labor organization and not an Irish organi- 
zation. It represents 21 labor organizations and every nationality 
on the globe; has a membership of approximately 12,000 people, 
and on December 9 the following resolution was adopted. I wish 
that to go into the record. 

St. Louis, Mo., December 9, 1918. 
Chairman of the Committee, 

House of Representatives, Washington, D. C. 

Sir: At a meeting of the representatives of this council held this date the 
question of applying the principle of self-determination to Ireland, when the 
negotiations for peace are undertaken, was freely discussed, with the result 
that the following resolution was adopted : 

" Be it resolved, That it be the sense of this meeting that the principle of 
self-determination, as enunciated by President Wilson in his speech setting 
forth the 14 points as a basis for negotiating peace, be applied to Ireland as 
well as to other peoples of Europe." 

I have been directed to transmit this information to your honorable body 
with a request that you kindly give it the consideration it merits. 

Hoping the deliberations of your committee will be of lasting benefit to all 
mankind, we remain, honorable sir, 
Yours, very respectfully, 

[seal.] Building Trades Council of St. Louis, Mo., 

Per Maurice J. Cassidy, Secretary. 

STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN W. RAINEY, A MEMBER OF CONGRESS 
FROM ILLINOIS. 

Mr. Kainey. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, I have listened with 
considerable pleasure to the suggestions offered by the representa- 
tives from all parts of the United States that Ireland have the right 
of self-determination, and I think the unanimity of feeling that is 
rampant here amongst the representatives assembled refute abso- 
lutely the oft-repeated suggestion that Irishmen can never agree 
amongst themselves. I have been honored with membership in the 
Sixty-fifth Congress, known as the war Congress. This the greatest 
Congress in our history, as honored as I have been by membership, 
my cup of happiness will be filled to overflowing if this committee 
reports this resolution favorably to the House and there is expressed 
the belief of the American Congress that Ireland should take her 
place among the nations of the earth. 

I was not a Member of this body when the Hon. Thomas Galla- 
gher, Member of Congress, presented his first resolution. I had in 
mind presentation of a resolution similar to the one offered by the 
distinguished Member from Chicago, but felt that offering it would 
be superfluous, and, not looking for any particular or personal dis- 
tinction, felt that there is honor enough for all and that I would 
contribute my mite by making it possible for this representative 
body to have an opportunity to present their claims before this com- 
mittee. And therefore on Thursday, December 5, when I should 
have been in Chicago with my wife, who on that day was blessed 
with a new baby girl, I remained here at the Capital and accom- 
panied Mr. Gallagher and came before this committee and urged 
upon them our desire to give the representatives of the Irish people 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 95 

of the United States an opportunity to present their case before 
this body. To-day as we look through the vista of years we are 
thrilled with joy, we feel the warmth, we see the glow of the sun- 
shine of Ireland's optimism. The sons and daughters of Ireland 
have never lost heart or hope, and to-day few nations, if any, in the 
world rank as high as Ireland. Measure the home of our fathers 
with the nations of the world in literature, the arts, the sciences 
and answer me, is not my claim sound in fact? 

The attainment of Ireland and its people in the highest things of 
life is unsurpassed by any people or nation of the world. 

In the arts, in science or warfare Ireland takes her place amongst 
the first nations of the earth. From Clontarf through the ages of 
bitter warfare that have been the cross of Erin, beyond the seas in the 
Indies, in the Orient, in the Transvaal, through the American Rebel- 
lion, in our recent world war, under conflicts of almost every nation, 
you will find the Irish soldier. And show me one not valorous and 
not true, not faithful to his cause. The history of our Republic is 
replete with stories of Irish valor. On land and sea the part played 
in the upbuilding and the preservation of our free institutions thrill 
us with just pride in our people. 

There is a spirit of liberty ever worn in the Irish breast and the 
spirit of scorn for the oppressor which nothing short of absolute in- 
dependence will ever satisfy. And nothing will induce them to re- 
nounce the ennobling desire for freedom which has preserved Ireland 
a nation in darker hours and darker times than these. Ireland wants 
and must have freedom. In the whole range of human history there 
is nothing more honorable than the struggle of the Irish people in 
the last 150 years. We know they were conquered, crushed, and 
humiliated. Young Ireland now strikes the higher note of national 
independence. "To the honor and glory of the Irish people and 
their dauntless champions in the cause of God and human right." 
Ireland has taught the world that trusting in God, patriotism and 
justice will triumph. And only a few days ago, when the great Euro- 
pean conflict was on, and the cannons roared and shells burst, and 
fields were overturned and crops destroyed, and monuments of his- 
tory and epics of architecture and art were demolished, and lives 
were snuffed out by millions, bodies scattered to the four winds, and 
widows wailed and orphans cried, and mothers trudged the weary 
way of poverty, sorrow, and hunger, and young girls collapsed by the 
roadside at the horrors of war and the bereavements of life, as all 
these outrages against peace, civilization, and religion were perpe- 
trated, you found hundreds of thousands of Irish at the front fight- 
ing the cause of humanity. 

It is true in this great land of America that when we entered this 
great struggle the sons of Ireland stood fast by the colors of this 
land, particularly during the days of peril and national trials. As 
one man they stood for America and the principles upon which it 
was founded, and for which it stands. As one man, without spirit 
of rivalry either political or racial, they stood by the President and 
the Government. And as one man they repudiated each and every 
citizen in private or public life or even in the councils of the Nation 
who dared endanger or expose to harm this great land that we call 



96 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

This is our country, and this is our home ; this is our shelter, and 
this is our refuge from oppression and denial of rights. Here we 
have found freedom and a better mode of life. Here we have found 
opportunities to mold our individual careers according to the power 
given us. Here we have found a place where we may worship our 
Creator according to our conscience and our hearts, and here we ask 
from this honorable committee a favorable report to the House that 
the blessings we have enjoyed in these great United States shall now 
be transmitted to our people across the sea, keeping in mind the 
suggestions offered by our great President. 

Ireland asks the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. 
They simply wish that restored which was taken from them. And 
this committee, assembled from all parts of the country, believe that 
we have sent across the high seas the Chief Executive of these great 
United States, who is thoroughly imbued with the fact that govern- 
ments should be established by the consent of the governed. 

The Son of Man was sent at the proper time to lead the world to 
light out of darkness ; Moses was sent to the Isrealites to lead them 
out of the bondage of Egypt into the promised land; Constantine 
the Great was sent to form a Christian empire out of the remains of 
pagan Rome ; Joan of Arc was sent to France in her hour of trials ; 
Columbus opened the gates of the western world when Europe had 
become too small ; Washington and Lincoln arose out of the Ameri- 
can multitudes, the one to found our country and the other to lead 
when the Union seemed in peril. And to-day, when the universe is 
fevered with the lust of war, a President, worthy of the name, has 
arisen and is steering manfully the ship of state through the chan- 
nels of peace. 

May we urge upon this committee that it report back to the House 
the right of Ireland to nationhood. 

If this is done it will be particularly pleasing to us in this sweet 
land of America, in this our beloved country, where Celt and Saxon 
come together to form the magnificent race of the future, that shall 
be, we may believe, the race that shall dominate the world and hasten 
and make speedier the coming of the day foreseen by the poet and 
prayed for by sage and saint; when the whole human family shall 
be literally one and when war shall be no more and cease amongst 
men; when the miserable race prejudices shall be things of the bar- 
barous past and the whole world shall be composed of one magnifi- 
cent family of which the various nations, if they shall retain their 
individuality, shall be but members, speak in one language and be 
largely assimilated in blood and religion. 

There has been an objection urged by some as to the propriety of 
this committee reporting favorably upon this resolution to the House. 
Let me say that there is absolutely no impropriety in this commit- 
tee reporting favorably to the House of this resolution for the self- 
determination of Ireland. 

The President of the United States has pledged himself before this 
Nation and before the world in declaring war against the central 
powers that it was the duty of this Nation to enter the war for the 
salvation of the democracy of Europe and for the bringing of the 
fruits of democracy to all the small nations of the world. Our life, 
our treasure, the officers and the parties of this Nation have all sup- 



THE IKISH QUESTION-. 97 

ported the President and the Congress of the United States for the 
carrying out of this desire. 

The war has been won at a tremendous cost of life and treasure, 
and it now remains for us to make good the pledge made to those 
who were willing to make these sacrifices for the carrying on of such 
lofty principles. And if we do not we certainly can not help but 
hear the voice of the dead on Flanders Field, at Chateau-Thierry, 
Argonne Forest, and Belleau Wood, and when Gen. Foch reviewed 
the troops he said that Belleau Wood from now on would be known 
as Bois des American, meaning, Woods of America, saying to us 
" If ye break faith with us who die we shall not sleep though pop- 
pies bloom on Flanders Field." 

Therefore I lend my voice to the petitions already put forth by 
the various representatives from throughout the country to you, Mr. 
Chairman and your honorable body that in your report of this reso- 
lution you suggest to the Congress of the United States that our con- 
ferees in the peace conference be instructed to demand for Ireland 
as a small nation along with the other small nations the right of 
self-determination and the enjoyment of the privileges of a free 
people. 

I present, to be spread on the record, a letter from former Gov. 
Dunne, of Illinois, and also a letter from Justice William E. Dever, 
member of the appellate court of Illinois. 

Dunne, Murphy & Dunne, 
Attorneys and Counselors, 

Chicago, December 10, 1918. 
To the Committee on Foreign Affairs, 

House of Representatives. 

(To which has been referred the resolution relating to the right of Ireland to 
self-determination of government.) 

Gentlemen : I regret exceedingly that pressing matters here in Chicago 
prevent me accompanying the committee from Chicago which will appear before 
your committee to urge a favorable report upon the resolution relating to the 
right of Ireland to self-determination of government. 

The great war just closed so triumphantly, I believe, has settled the right of 
small nations to self-determination of government, as enunciated so eloquently 
and forcefully by our great President, for all time. 

This war had its genesis in the assertion by Austria-Hungary of the right to 
govern the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina without the consent of those little 
nations and developed into a struggfe between the Slavonic and Teutonic races, 
and finally culminated in the violent assertion by the central powers of tne 
right to overrun and destroy Belgium, Luxemburg, and other small nations. 

For a time the struggle was confined to Europe, but when the central powers 
began to trample upon the rights of American citizens upon the high seas and 
murdered American citizens ruthlessly and remorselessly the war developed 
into a struggle to preserve democracy throughout the world and rights of free 
nations and peoples to conduct their governments in accordance with the wishes 
of these peoples. 

The issue has now become world wide. The farseeing statesman in the 
White House has given to the world a declaration of national rights applicable 
equally to great and small nations, and has voiced the true sentiment of the 
American people. 

These rights must be asserted, and will be asserted, in the peace conference 
soon to assemble. Among the small nations which should be accorded that right 
is Ireland, who, for nearly 800 years, has been struggling to assert that right 
against British domination. 

No reason can be truthfully urged why the people of Ireland should not be 
accorded the right of other small nations. Ireland has never invaded any 
other country, nor sought to interfere with the rights of any other country to 

H. Doc. 1832, 65-3 7 



98 THE IRISH QUESTION". 

determine their scheme of government. Famine and depopulation from nearly 
9,000,000 to about 4,500,000 during the last 70 years has been the result of' 
foreign domination, against which she protests. Her sons have been scattered 1 
throughout the civilized world and have attested their love of liberty in every 
land in which they dwell. They fought for the preservation of the Union in 
this country and for the independence of the South American Republics. Millions 
of men of Irish blood in this country have hailed with joy the attitude of the 
American Republic expressed through its President, and would respectfully 
request that the Congress of the United States uphold his hands before the 
peace conference by declaring that Ireland, as well as Belgium, Luxemburg, 
Bohemia, Serbia, Herzegovina, Bosnia, and other small nations shall be given 
the right to determine the form of government under which they shall exist 
and develop. 

Very respectfully, 

E. F. Dunne- 



Chicago, III., December 10, 1918. 

Hon. KlCKHAM SCANLAN, 

Judge of the Circuit Court, Cook County, 111. 

Dear Judge Scanlan : I regret very much, indeed, my inability to accompany 
your committee to Washington. I intended to be with you," as you know, but 
circumstances beyond me compel my presence here on Thursday next. 

However, I am convinced that your purpose in going to Washington will be 
fully realized. The present issue as to Ireland is perfectly simple and clear. 
The announcement is made that the peace conference to be held in Paris will 
definitely set at rest the question of the right of all nations, both large and 
small, to determine for themselves their own form of Government. It can not 
be true that the Irish people alone are to be denied a privttege which is to be 
recognized as a fundamental right of every people on the face of the earth. 

Poland is to be permitted to govern herself. Poland was not a party to the' 
war, except, like Ireland, in so far as she was by force compelled to submit to* 
the sovereignty of other nations This is also true of Armenia and the several 
peoples who wont to make up the Austrian Empire. There is no difference in 
principle between the status of these people and that of the Irish. Such differ- 
ence as there is is merely one of degree. The injustice to and the sufferings 
of Ireland have continued for centuries longer than those imposed upon many 
of the other peoples referred to. 

Twenty-six counties of the 32 in Ireland desire that Ireland shall be treated 
as other peoples are to be treated by the peace conference; and this wish is 
supported by a large percentage of the people of the other 6 counties. Many 
millions of American citizens, men am! women of Irish nativity or descent, be- 
lieve, now that a congress of nations is about to provide for the relief of the 
oppressed nations of the earth, that it is eminently fitting that the United 
States Congress should announce that the Irish people, who have given so 
much of their service and blood to this Nation, should not be excluded from 
the right to determine for themselves such kind and form of government as 
they may see fit to live under. 
Sincerely, yours, 

W t liliam E. Deveb. 

Mr. Cooper. Miss Hughes has handed me a definition of the word 
Sinn Fein, which I believe should go in the record. "Sinn Fein 
literally means, ' We ourselves '; in a broader interpretation it means, 
' We ourselves rely on ourselves ; ' ' we ourselves will govern our- 
selves ; " we ourselves will be free men, not bond men.' " 

Miss Hughes. May I add that George Washington was the great- 
est advocate of Sinn Fein in all history. 

STATEMENT OF MR. JOHN P. O'CONNOR. 

Mr. O'Connor. Mr. Chairman and honorable body, I represent 
the Street Car Men's Organization of the city of St. Louis, Mo., num- 
bering 5,000. We have got 1,450 men in the colors to-day. The first 
man w T ho paid the great sacrifice on the fields of France was an 
Irishman, born and raised in Ireland. The men of my organization 

I 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 99 

delegated me to come here before your committee. They comprise 
men of all the nationalities on earth, and they are heart and soul 
with Ireland in getting the same justice as Poland, Greece, and 
Serbia. 

In line with Mr. O 'Sullivan's statement, I was in Ireland 15 years 
ago, and had two brothers in Ireland when this war broke out. When 
they first passed home rule for Ireland and King George signed it, 
my brothers volunteered; they went over to the Dardenelles, came 
back wounded, and went a second time; they were transferred to 
Greece, and then to Macedonia ; were wounded, and transferred back 
to France; and to-day they are in a hospital in England. I have a 
brother that volunteered in Canada and served with Canadian troops. 
He is in an English hospital to-day. I have a brother that was a 
motorman, and I think it was on the 28th day of April, 1917, he 
volunteered in the American Army, and to-day he is fighting in 
France. This man Fox, talking about American citizens of Irish 
blood in this room being pro-German, has the wrong idea when he 
says I am not a good American citizen. 

STATEMENT OF CONGRESSMAN PETER F. TAGUE. 

Mr. Tague. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, I shall 
not take up the time of the committee in making any extended re- 
marks on this question, but wish to reiterate all that has been said 
in favor of self-determination for Ireland. I represent, in person, 
in this Congress a city having' perhaps more people of Irish blood 
than any city in this country, the city of Boston. I represent the 
district known as Bunker Hill. That is my home. Bunker Hill is 
made up to-day of 40,000 people. Over 37,000 people of those are of 
Irish blood. That district to-day in the Army and the Navy of 
the United States is represented by more than 4,500 men. They are 
the sons of Irishmen, and they are sons of the members of the Ancient 
Order of Hibernians. We have given as freely of our boys in pro- 
portion, as great in numbers as any district in this land, and we 
are the children of these Irishmen, loving our own United States. 
Knowing the history of the country of our fathers, we come before 
your committee asking for the passage of a resolution that will give 
self-determination to Ireland, that she may rule herself as we rule 
ourselves, and that she may come into her own, that which she has 
fought for for centuries, and what which she has helped other nations 
to secure, freedom and liberty. 

Mr. Sabath. You are just as sincerely for the determination of the 
rights and independence of all other nations, such as Bohemia and 
Poland, are you not? 

Mr. Tague. I believe in the freedom of all the peoples of all the 
world. 

STATEMENT OF HON. CHARLES POPE CALDWELL, MEMBER OF 
CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF NEW YORK. 

Mr. Caldwell. I did not intend to say anything here, but the 
statement that I have heard, that this is a Catholic meeting, compels 
me to say a word. 

I am a Protestant of the fourth generation. My great-grandfather 
was a member of the Irish Volunteers, a Protestant. [Applause.] 



100 THE IKISH QUESTION. 

It occurs to me that the passage of this resolution is going to answer 
one great question that has troubled many of our people, and troubled 
them particularly about the time we were going into the war. That 
question : Did we enter this war to fight for England, or with Great 
Britain and Ireland ? If we went in to fight for England, the gentle- 
man from Connecticut (Mr. Fox) is right, but if we went in to fight 
with Great Britain and Ireland, then we owe it as a duty to stand 
for the great principle of democracy that has been advocated by our 
President since the beginning of this great trouble, and see to it that 
the people all over the earth have a right to self-determination. That 
applies to Ireland, as it applies to the Kurds, the Christians, the Jews, 
the Jugo-Slavs, the Czechs, and every other people on the earth who 
have in their bosoms that thing that has been taught by America, 
that all men are born free and equal, and each is entitled to life, 
liberty, and the pursuit of happiness wherever he may be. [Ap- 
plause.] 

REMARKS OF HON. JOHN J. DELANEY, A REPRESENTATIVE IN 
CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF NEW YORK. 

Mr. Delaney. Mr. Chairman, I am proud of the opportunity 
afforded me at this time to speak a few words in favor of this resolu- 
tion. You have already heard the story of Ireland and her sons. 
Her sufferings have borne fruit in America in the love of liberty her 
sons have brought from the old land. Celtic idealism has shone the 
brighter for the long night of oppression which has enshrouded Erin 
for centuries. But now the answer to the eager questioning of anx- 
ious hearts to the watchmen on the walls, u What of the night?" 
seems about to be "The morning cometh." For England, too, has 
had her adversity. The deep significance of the blood shed by Eng- 
land in the recent struggle, the titanic and terrible character of which 
has staggered humanity, I will not seek to determine here. 

It has been said that the impecunious condition of the British 
exchequer is the only real obstacle to a juster dealing with Ireland 
now. Yet I am loth to hope that if our peace commission will lend 
their powerful support to the movement England will soon be ready 
to do justice to a nation and a people long neglected and misused. 

I believe, and I can not help wish, that the British Government 
would show at least rudimentary common sense in Irish affairs and 
not deliberately plant mines of discontent and resistance all over the 
English-speaking world. Everything has been muddled by the Brit- 
ish Government in Ireland, and I am firm in the conviction that the 
support of the many thousands of Americans who sympathize with 
the principles of self-government everywhere — in Ireland no less 
than in Poland or Bohemia or Serbia — has been embarrassed and 
scarcely less than scorned. For some unexplainable reason every 
step in" the recent past taken by the British Government toward con- 
ciliation in Ireland was immediately taken back. I can see no harm 
whatever in America lending its wise counsel in the hope that this 
disturbing question may be settled now once and for all. I earnestly 
ask the members of this committee to report this resolution to the 
House, where I believe it is sure to meet with practically the unani- 
mous approval of Congress. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 101 

STATEMENT OF MR. P. T. MORAN, OF WASHINGTON, D. C. 

Mr. Moran. Mr. Chairman, I represent the United Societies of 
Washington in the winters and in the summer I represent a good 
big district of Virginia, and I got a good deal of my inspiration from 
the history-making men of Virginia. It has given me inspiration to 
speak for the self-determination of the smaller nations of the earth. 
I have also been associated with some of the big business organiza- 
tions in this city. Having been president of the Chamber of Com- 
merce of Washington for two years I had an opportunity to come 
in contact with the various business men of the various nationalities, 
and being one of the " exiles of Erin " from time to time the question 
of Ireland would come up, and I must confess that I have never 
found a man that has said an unkind word toward those who have 
been championing the Irish cause and favoring the independence of 
Ireland. I appreciate the fact that public sentiment will be the 
guiding movement behind this proposition to get you gentlemen 
to act favorably on this resolution. We hope this committee will 
act favorably on this resolution, because if you do not there will be 
20,000,000 of American citizens of Irish blood in this country who 
will feel disappointed to think that some of their sons shed their 
blood on the other side fighting for democracy, and fighting for the 
liberation of smaller nations and that Ireland, the cradle land of 
their forefathers, should be denied the right of sef-determination. 

REMARKS OF HON. GEORGE F. O'SHAUNESSY, A REPRESENTA- 
TIVE IN CONGRESS FROM RHODE ISLAND. 

Mr. O'Shaunessy. No unbiased mind will challenge the statement 
that Alsace-Lorraine has been a thorn in the side of France since the 
Franco-Prussian War. One of the underlying causes of the great 
war now happily ended was this German war spoil taken 'from 
France in 1870. France is to have Alsace-Lorraine restored to her, 
and Germany will be the better for it. Ill-gotten goods never bring 
luck. 

Why should Ireland not be restored to her own people? Why 
should not the legislative crime of 1800 be undone? No honest man 
will attempt to defend the act of union by which Ireland was de- 
prived of her legislative independence. Imperfect as the Irish Par- 
liament was, and corrupt as it was, it did a great good for Ireland, 
particularly from 1782 to 1800. The law prohibited Catholics from 
membership therein. 

Lord Sheffield, who wrote upon Irish commerce in 1785, said : "At 
present, perhaps, the improvement of Ireland is as rapid as any coun- 
try ever experienced." Lord Clare, speaking in 1798 of the period 
that had elapsed since 1782, said : " There is not a nation in the habit- 
able globe which has advanced in cultivation and commerce, in agri- 
culture and manufactures with the same rapidity in the same period." 

Four-fifths of the people of Ireland were against the act of union 
with Great Britain. The act was accomplished through wholesale 
bribery and corruption of the Irish Parliament made up of men 
largely from rotten boroughs. A referendum to the people on the 
question of the union was refused. 



102 THE IRISH QUESTION - . 

Catholic opposition was put to sleep by a promise of emancipation 
which did not become a reality for 29 years afterwards, mainly 
through the spirited leadership of Daniel O'Connell. 

If justice and honor and right are to be enthroned at the peace 
table, how can Ireland's claims go unrecognized ? Is it not the ac- 
cepted time for her people to be given the opportunity to decide their 
lives for themselves? We in America believe in majority rule, and 
bow with graciousness to majority decree. Why not let the majority 
in Ireland determine their political life? The ballot in the hands of 
every man and woman in Ireland over 21 will soon end an age-long 
question, if those men and women are permitted to vote upon the 
question of the kind of government they want. Such a verdict by 
Irish men and women honestly recorded and enforced would bring 
to England the plaudits of the world. Only orass, stupid, junker 
statesmanship will oppose such a solution. 

I favor the Gallagher resolution, and I know that its passage by 
this Congress will bring joy to the hearts of every red-blooded Amer- 
ican. It will be hailed with satisfaction by the great British democ- 
racy, which is as urgent as its brethren in America that justice be 
done the long-suffering Emerald Isle. 

Mr. Rogers. Mr. Chairman, I would like to propose an extension 
in the record also by printing the memorial sent to the prime minister 
of England in April, 1917, signed by about 175 Members of Con- 
gress. 

I think that action which called for a solution of the Irish ques- 
tion was in a very large way the forerunner of the hearings we have 
been having for the last few days. 

Mr. Sabath. I think that privilege was accorded our friend, Mr. 
Gallivan, of Massachusetts. 

ADDITIONAL REMARKS OF HON. JAMES A. GALLIVAN, A REPRE- 
SENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF MASSACHU- 
SETTS. 

Mr. Gallivan. In connection with the suggestion of Congressman 
Rogers, I desire to submit at this stage of the hearing a copy of the 
petition which I had the pleasure of drawing up and cabling to 
Hon. Lloyd-George. May I add that in addition to the very repre- 
sentative number of Members of Congress who signed the appeal 
there were countless other Congressmen who spoke to me after they 
read the printed petition in the Congressional Record, and assured 
me that they would gladly have given their signatures for use if 
they had been approached. 

The message sent to Lloyd-George read as follows : 

Washington, D. C, April 28, 1917. 
The Right Hon. David Lloyd-Geoege, M. P., 

London, England. 

You are quoted as saying that " the settlement of the Irish question is essen- 
tial for the peace of the world and for a speedy victory in the war." 

May we, Members of the American Congress, suggest that nothing will add 
more to the enthusiasm of America in this war than a settlement now of the 
Irish problem. 

We believe that all Americans will be deeply stirred and their enthusiastic 
effort enlisted if the British Empire will now settle this problem in accordance 
with the principles announced by President Wilson in his address to Congress 



THE IRISH QUESTION - . 103 

asking it to declare war on autocracy for the world-wide safety of democracy 

and of small nationalities. 

Champ Clark, of Missouri, Speaker of the American Congress ; James 
A. Gallivan, of Massachusetts; John J. Fitzgerald, of New York; 
Claude Kitchin, of North Carolina ; John F. Carew, of New 
York ; Daniel J. Griffin, of New York ; William C. Adamson, of 
Georgia ; William A. Ayres, of Kansas; Eugene Black, of Texas; 
Henry Bruckner, of New York ; James F. Byrnes, of South 
Carolina; Clement Brumbaugh, of Ohio; Charles P. Caldwell, 
of New York; Philip P. Campbell, of Kansas; William H. Carter, 
of Massachusetts; Walter M. Chandler, of New York; Frank 
Clark, of Florida; Charles P. Coady, of Maryland; James W. 
Collier, of Mississippi ; Peter E. Costello, of Pennsylvania ; Harry 
H. Dale, of New York ; Perl D. Decker, of Missouri ; S. Wallace 
Dempsey, of New York ; Edward E. Denison, of Illinois ; A. G. 
Dewalt, of Pennsylvania ; Peter J. Dooling, of New York ; Dud- 
ley Doolittle, of Kansas ; H. G. Duprg, of Louisiana ; L. C. 
Dyer, of Missouri ; John J. Eagan, of New Jersey ; Joe H. Eagle, 
of Texas ; Henry I. Emerson, of Ohio ; John R. Farr, of Penn- 
sylvania; Simeon D. Fess, of Ohio; H. F. Fisher, of Tennessee; 
Joseph V. Flynn, of New York ; A. T. Fuller, of Massachusetts ; 
Thomas Gallagher, of Illinois; Warren Gard. of Ohio; M. M. 
Garland, of Pennsylvania ; James P. Glynn, of Connecticut ; 
James A. Hamill, of New Jersey; Rufus Hardy, of Texas; 
Robert D. Heaton. of Pennsylvania ; J. Thomas Heflin. of Ala- 
bama ; Walter L. Hensley, of Missouri ; Benjamin C. Hilliard, of 
Colorado; Edward E. Holland, of Virginia; W. C. Houston, of 
Tennessee ; W. Schley Howard, of Georgia ; Murray Hulbert, 
of New York ; Benjamin G. Humphreys, of Mississippi ; William 
L. Igoe, of Missouri ; Edward Keating, of Colorado ; Walter 
Kehoe, of Florida ; Ambrose Kennedy, of Rhode Island ; Irvine 
L. Lenroot, of Wisconsin; J. Charles Linthicum, of Maryland; 
Meyer London, of New York ; Augustine Lonergan, of Con- 
necticut; George R. Lunn, of New York; James McAndrews, of 
Illinois; Medill McCormick, of Illinois; Tom D. McKeown, of 
Oklahoma ; Joseph McLaughlin, of Pennsylvania ; Jeff McLemore, 
of Texas; Martin B. Madden, of Illinois; James P. Maher, of 
New York ; Charles Martin, of Illinois ; William E. Mason, of 
Illinois ; Jacob Meeker, of Missouri ; Frank W. Mondell, of Wyo- 
ming; Andrew J. Montague, of Virginia; John M. Morin, of 
Pennsylvania ; Patrick D. Norton, of North Dakota ; George F. 
9'Shaunessy, of Rhode Island; Arthur W. Overmyer, of Ohio; 
Frank Park, of Georgia ; James S. Parker, of New York ; Michael 
F. Phelan, of Massachusetts; Charles H. Randall, of California; 
Daniel J. Riordan, of New York ; William A. Rodenberg, of 
Illinois ; Arthur B. Rouse, of Kentucky : Frederick W. Rowe, of 
New York; Adolph Sabath. of Illinois;" Thomas J. Scully, of New 
Jersey ; Thetus W. Sims, of Tennessee ; Charles B. Smith, of New 
York ; Thomas F. Smith, of New York ; Homer P. Snyder, of New 
York ; Christopher D. Sullivan, of New York ; Peter F. Tague, 
of Massachusetts; Charles B. Timberlake, of Colorado; George 
H. Tinkham, of Massachusetts; Carl C. Van Dyke, of Minne- 
sota ; William S. Vare, of Pennsylvania ; Joseph Walsh, of Mas- 
sachusetts ; Charles B. Ward, of New York ; Henry W. Watson, 
of Pennsylvania ; Edwin Y. Webb, of North Carolina ; William 
W. Wilson, of Illinois ; William S. Greene, of Massachusetts ; 
Reuben L. Haskell, of New York; F. H. LaGuardia, of New 
York ; Frank E. Doremus, of Michigan ; Fred A. Britten, of 
Illinois; G. W. Templeton, of Pennsylvania; Luther W. Mott, 
of New York ; Isaac Bacharach, of New Jersey ; John R. K. 
Scott, of Pennsylvania ; Charles H. Rowland, of Pennsylvania ; 
Henry A. Clark, of Pennsylvania; Edgar R. Kiess, of Pennsyl- 
vania ; George P. Darrow, of Pennsylvania ; Aaron S. Kreider, 
of Pennsylvania; Edwin E. Robbins, of Pennsylvania; John M. 
Rose, of Pennsylvania ; Charles H. Sloan, of Nebraska ; Thomas 
S. Crago, of Pennsylvania ; Julius Kahn, of California ; AVilliam 
L. La Follette, of Washington; Charles A. Kennedy,' of Iowa; 



104 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

Ebenezer I. Hill, of Connecticut; Benjamin K. Focht, of Penn- 
sylvania ; Charles C. Kearns, of Ohio ; George W. Edmonds, of 
Pennsylvania ; John W. Langley, of Kentucky ; Nathan L. Strong, 
of Pennsylvania ; J. Hampton Moore, of Pennsylvania ; John J. 
Rogers, of Massachusetts; Frederick W. Dallinger, of Massa- 
chusetts; Calvin D. Paige, of Massachusetts; John R. Ramsey, 
of New Jersey ; Ben Johnson, of Kentucky ; Riley J. Wilson, of 
Louisiana ; Isaac Siegel, of New York. 

STATEMENT OF REV. WILLIAM J. KIRWIN, BUFFALO, N. Y. 

Rev. Father Kirwin. I will read a telegram from Congressman 
Smith, a member of your committee. Here is his telegram : 

Buffalo, N. Y., December 11, 1918. 
Rev. William J. Kirwin, Washington, D. C. 

Having complete sympathy with the movement to allow Ireland, as well as 
other small nations, to determine her own destiny and establish the government 
which best meets the needs and desires of her own people, I am naturally 
desirous of doing everything practicable and honorable to bring success to Ire- 
land's self-determination movement. As to the specific legislation before the 
committee I have not had the opportunity to read the resolution or study its 
provisions. 

Charles B. Smith, M. C. 

Mr. Chairman, all I have to say in this matter is this: Any ques- 
tion that disturbs the peace of the civilized world assumes the status 
of an international question. The Irish question is disturbing, has 
disturbed, and, unless settled, will continue to disturb the peace of the 
civilized world, and, therefore, it assumes the status of an interna- 
tional question. If it is an international question, it is a question 
on which Congress can intervene. The objection to that is that the 
English say it is a domestic question, but that is a play on words, be- 
cause questions which had once been domestic questions have now 
become international questions. The Bolshevik question, which was 
once a national question is now an intenational question, and the 
question of the Dardanelles and Bohemia are now international ques- 
tions. We hold that a mountain of unpleasantness has arisen out of 
the national sphere into a question that affects the civilized world — 
and when I say the civilized world, even if we omit France, Switzer- 
land, and so on, and limit it to England and Ireland — it affects all 
the civilized world, because as it used to be said when France was 
sick, Europe was sick; so we can say to-day when Ireland is sick, 
Europe is sick. Therefore, I offer that as an idea for Congress, the 
supreme law-making body of this country, having all the power and 
the machinery to legislate — no other body in this' country has that 
power — and we ask Congress to exercise the power with which it is 
endowed. 

STATEMENT OF FORMER CONGRESSMAN MICHAEL F. D0N0H0E, 
OF PHILADELPHIA. 

Mr. Donohoe. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, I 
will not detain you because I know your broad grasp for world 
affairs. I, too, would pay my respects to the gentleman from Con- 
necticut (Mr. Fox), whether self -constituted or paid or employed, 
and it shows the audacity of those self-appointed men in questioning 
the right of our country to instruct our delegates when it is shown 
that a commission appointed to go into the question of the financial 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 105 

situation between England and Ireland, concluded that Ireland had 
been robbed of vast sums of money within the previous 75 years, and 
in spite of the fact that a million men had died of famine that was 
man-made. He denies the fact that American generals and almost 
one-half of the people that fought in the Revolutionary War in 
America were Irish and spoke the Irish tongue, denies the services 
of Jack Barry, which have never been denied except by those who 
would falsify Ireland ; denies Steven Moylan, the right-hand man of 
George Washington, and all the other great men. It is impossible 
for so great and learned a gentleman as our friend from Connecticut 
to so distort the history of the United States as he has attempted 
to do. 

STATEMENT OF REV. T. J. HURTON, OF PHILADELPHIA, PA. 

Rev. Father Hurton. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the com- 
mittee, I represent 133 units of 25 different organizations of Penn- 
sylvania with 60,000 members. I also represent a public meeting 
at which 10,000 people attended in the Academy of Music, and also 
on Broad Street, Philadelphia, filling one whole square, on Decem- 
ber 10, 1918, at which Senator Phelan and Mr. Conboy, the director 
of the draft in New York, spoke for the self-determination of Ire- 
land, and at which 150 of the most prominent Pennsylvanians, in- 
cluding eight Catholic bishops of Pennsylvania, were vice presidents, 
and of which the honorary chairman and one of the vice presidents 
was Governor-elect Sproles of Pennsylvania ; and two of the vice 
presidents were Rabbi Cosgrove and Rabbi Newman. The meeting 
was an American one and I desire to file this document adopted by 
the meeting: 
To the President and Congress of the United States of America: 

1. We, the undersigned, citizens of the United States, differing in race, 
religion, and domestic politics, are one in the belief that " governments derive 
their just powers from the consent of the governed." This basic principle of 
American liberty is nobly championed by our great President. To win self- 
determinnation for all peoples, this justice-loving Republic entered the world 
war. 

2. The Irish nation is one of the oldest in Europe. Its contribution to civili- 
zation in the centuries of its independence is highly esteemed by all who read 
history. 

Ireland never surrendered her national rights. The act of union, so called, 
was passed by a Parliament corrupted by England, in which less than one-fifth 
of the people of Ireland were represented. Two years before this " union," in 
1798, and three years after it, under Robert Emmet, Ireland fought for her 
national independence, as she did in every century since the English invasion. 

The net results of British domination in Ireland are destruction of industries, 
poverty, and depopulation. 

In the last 70 years Ireland's population has been cut in half while England's 
has almost trebled. 

3. Irishmen played a large part in freeing America from foreign rule and 
in the development of the Republic. In the present conflict over half a million 
Americans of Irish blood served in our Army and Navy. It is estimated that 
an equal number of men, born in Ireland (most of them exiled by bad 
economic conditions at home), enlisted throughout the world. From the Provost 
Marshal General's report it appears that a larger percentage of alien cobelliger- 
ents of Irish than of any other nationality waived exemption in the United 
States. For example: Ireland, 30.4; England, 22.5. These men offered their 
lives for world freedom, confident that such a freedom would include the mother- 
land of their race. No race now being freed has done more for world liberty 
in this war than the Irish race. 



106 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

4. At this supreme moment, when the wrongs of centuries are being righted, 
a military despotism keeps the voice of Ireland from the ears of the free 
nations. Irish jails are rilled with the best citizens. Many leaders of the peo- 
ple and elected representatives are deported to England and imprisoned with- 
out trial or even legal accusation. 

5. In the face of these autocratic conditions a conference which met in the 
Mansion House, Dublin, and had delegates from 80 per cent of the elected 
representatives of Ireland, unanimously addressed President Wilson, June 11, 
1918, and urged self-determination for Ireland as " a sovereign principle be 
tween a nation that has never abandoned her independent rights and an adja 
cent nation that has persistently sought to strangle them." 

Of the national councils of oppressed peoples that have appealed to our Presi- 
dent, none was more clearly representative of the will of its nation than the 
Mansion House conference, appealing for the Irish nation. Our patriots could 
muster no such proportion for independence in 1776. Democracy Is majority 
rule. In no nation is unanimity found, yet England maintains for her own pur- 
poses the will of 20 per cent as against the will of 80 per cent of the Irish 
people. 

6. England despite her professed acceptance of the President's principles, 
has (by Parliament vote Nov. 5, 1918) refused Ireland self-determination. 

7. Deeming this an opportune time, as American arms are victorious, we con- 
fidently petition the President and Congress to exercise the unique power for 
justice of the United States to secure for Ireland, equally with' Finland, Poland, 
Bohemia, and Belgium, that self-determination which President Wilson has 
demanded for all peoples — the form of government to be decided by adult 
suffrage of the people of Ireland — and representation at the peace conference 
and in the league of nations. Let history record that America secured for 
Ireland that justice which the sons of both nations freely bled to win for all 
peoples. 

America, to equal Ireland's man contribution to the war, would 
have to place 11,000,000 men on the fighting fronts. 

Gentlemen, I now request the insertion in the record of " Ireland's 
Plea for Freedom," by William J. M. A. Maloney, M. D., late captain 
of the British Army ; also the Sinn Fein platform, adopted at their 
convention, 1917. 

Ireland's Plea for Freedom. 

[William J. M. A. Maloney, M. D., late captain in the British Army.] 

THE IRISH ISSUE IN ITS AMERICAN ASPECT. 

About 150 years ago the American States, becoming increasingly self- 
conscious, felt it to be inconsistent with their rights longer to submit to colonial 
bondage. They readily perceived a community of interests with Ireland, the 
oldest of England's dependencies. Not that the American States, 3,000 miles 
from England, had ever experienced the weight of the yoke which Ireland, on 
the threshold of England, endured. But in principle the problem confronting 
the two dependencies was identical. " The question in both countries," wrote 
Froude ("English in Ireland," p. 1S9), "was substantially the same; whether 
the Mother Country had a right to utilize her dependencies for her own interests 
irrespective of their consent." And the all-wise Franklin, preparing for the 
contest which was to settle this question for his people, visited Ireland in 1771 
to emphasize to the Irish Patriot party the essential unity of American aims 
with Irish interests. "I found them," he records ("Franklin's Works," VII, 
pp. 557-558), "disposed to be friends of America in which I endeavored to con- 
firm them with the expectation that our growing weight might in turn be thrown 
into one scale and by joining our interests with theirs a more equitable treat- 
ment from this nation (England) might be obtained for themselves as well as 
for us." Franklin not only sought through Ireland to weaken England in the 
impending struggle against the American States, he also contemplated an affilia- 
tion of Ireland and of Canada with the people he represented. His diplomatic 
mission was followed up by action on the part of the first general Congress 
which m*t in Philadelphia on September 4, 1774. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 107 

For any subject of England to aid America was, of course, treason against 
England. And the American Fathers, conscious of the consequences of this 
crime, deemed it their duty to forbid the Island of Jamaica to incur the dangers 
of aiding the Revolution. " The peculiar situation of your Island," said the 
Congressional Letter to the Jamaican Assembly, read on July 25, 1775, "forbids 
your assistance." Remoteness from England endowed Jamaica with, at least, 
relative safety. If wise discretion was advisable in Jamaica, it might have 
been considered imperative in Ireland, isolated and well-nigh defenseless at the 
very gates of England, and therefore in a " peculiar situation " to perform 
vicarious expiation for all traitorous colonists. 

But no admonition to caution came from Congress to moderate Irish ardor 
for the American cause. Instead, Congress appointed a committee to draft an 
address " To the People of Ireland," which was read on July 28, 1775, and which 
ran as follows : 

" We are desirous of the good opinion of the virtuous and humane. We are 
peculiarly desirous of furnishing you with the true state of our motives and 
objects, the better to enable you to judge of our conduct with accuracy and 
determine the merits of the controvei'sy with impartiality and precision. Your 
Parliament has done us no wrong. You had ever been friendly to the rights 
of mankind ; and we acknowledge with pleasure and gratitude that your nation 
has produced patriots who have nobly distinguished themselves in the cause 
of humanity and of America." 

The judgment sought by Congress from Ireland was so unanimous in favor 
of America that the disastrous effect of the Revolution on Irish trade did not 
prevent " the mass of the people, both Catholic and Protestant, from wishing 
success to the patriotic colonists" (Mitchel). "Ireland was with America to 
a man," declared Pitt, the "Great Commoner" (Bancroft's "History of the 
United States," vol. VII, p. 194). The people of Dublin presented their thanks, 
and the " Merchants' Guild " gave an address of honor to the Earl of Effingham 
who " refused to draw the sword against the lives and liberties of his fellow 
subjects " in America. In Belfast meetings were held and money was raised to 
support the American cause. And G rattan boldly referred to America as " the 
only hope of Ireland and the only refuge of the liberties of mankind " (" Select 
Speeches of Grattan," edited by Duffy, p. 104). The menace of that "hostility 
to the pretensions of England " which Franklin had sought to excite in Ireland 
grew aggressively until it proved powerful to reenforce American valor in 
establishing the independence of the revolting States. 

The Americans had incited in the Irish a fervor for freedom which Lord 
North and his contemporaries, in spite of conciliation, corruption, and conces- 
son, failed to calm. It did not evoke a crisis till 1782, and it did not make the 
country a shambles till 1798; but from the first it was an ever-present danger 
at the very heart of the British Empire and it gravely handicapped the war 
council at Westminster in the conduct of their operations against the American 
revolutionaries. 

But apart altogether from the influence which Ireland's attitude exerted upon 
the fate of the American Revolution, England had direct evidence of the Irish 
share in her defeat. 

Practically the first blow in the Revolution was struck on behalf of the 
American rebels by the son of a Limerick schoolmaster, John Sullivan, of New 
Hampshire, who on December 13, 1774, captured the Fort of William and Mary. 
The first stroke at British sea powej was delivered for America off Machias, on 
the coast of Maine, in May, 1775, by Jeremiah O'Brien. Richard Montgomery, 
of Rapahoe, and other Irish generals helped to lead the American forces in the 
field ; Andrew Brown, an Ulsterman, served as Mustermaster General ; Stephen 
Moylan, brother of the Bishop of Cork, acted as aid-de-camp to Washington 
and later as Quartermaster General to the Forces; John Barry, formerly of 
Wexford, founder of the American Navy, scoured the seas; the Friendly Sons 
of St. Patrick contributed to the revolutionary treasury $517,000, an immense 
sum in those days ; and men of Irish birth and blood stood high in the councils 
of the revolutionary Government. The famous .Pennsylvania line, the bulwark 
of the American defense, was called " the line of Ireland," so largely was it 
formed of Irishmen. The New Jersey line " bristled with Irishmen." There 
were Irishmen in every American camp and field. In the course of a debate in 
the Irish House of Commons on April 2, 1784, the Hon. Luke Gardiner stated : 

'•' I am assured from the best authority that the major portion of the American 
Army was composed of Irish and that the Irish language was as commonly 



108 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

spoken in the American ranks as English. I am also informed that it was 
their valor determined the contest so that England had America detached from 
her by force of Irish emigrants." 

Major General Robertson, of the British Army, in " The Evidence as Given 
Before a Committee of the House of Commons on the Detail and the Conduct of 
the American War" (London, 1785), is recorded as testifying under oath that 
the American General, Henry Lee, informed him that " half the rebel Conti- 
nental army were from Ireland." 

In 1779 Count Arthur Dillon, the son of an Irish nobleman in the service of 
Louis XVI, addressed to the French War Office a petition on behalf of all the 
Irish soldiers in France craving that they be allowed to go to fight for Amer- 
ican freedom. The petition being granted, he sailed from Brest with 2,300 
Irish troops. In conformity with the American plan of campaign, Dillon was 
directed to attack British strongholds in the West Indies. He and the other 
Irishmen, the very van of the forces sent from France, soon paralyzed British 
power in the West Indies and captured there bases of British activity against 
America. Presently, Count Arthur Dillon was Governor of St. Christopher; 
Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Fitzmaurice, Governor of St. Eustasia, and Lieu- 
tenant Colonel H. D. Dunn, Commandant of the Island of Granada. 

The Irish died on the field, languished in the British prison hulks in the 
harbor of New York, lived maimed, and were branded traitors, that America 
should be free. And when the Declaration of Independence was issued among 
those who signed it were: Smith, Taylor, and Thornton, of Irish birth ; McKean, 
Read, and Routledge, of Irish parentage; Carroll and Lynch, grandsons of 
Irishmen ; and Hancock and Whipple, of Irish descent on the maternal side. 
Well might George Washington Parke Custis, the adopted son of the Father of 
the United States, says to his countrymen : 

" The Shamrock should be entwined with the laurels of the Revolution. 
Americans, recall to your minds the recollections of this heroic time when Irish- 
men were your friends and when in the whole world we had not a friend beside. 
The rank grass had grown over the grave of many a poor Irishman who had 
died for America ere the Flag of the Lilies floated in the field by the Star- 
Spangled Banner." 

The triumph of the American cause had the consequence in Ireland which the 
American Fathers had humanely foreseen in the case of Jamaica. The Irish share 
in that triumph induced a very natural resentment in England, to which the prox- 
imity of America's chief and most jubilant accomplice afforded an occasion and 
an opportunity for leisurely satisfaction. Hence we find General Abercromby, 
the penitent chief of the British Forces in Ireland, writing of the '98 rebellion : 
" Every cruelty and crime that could be committed by Cossacks or Calmucks 
had been committed in Ireland by the Army and with the sanction of those in 
high office." After the rebellion of 1867 John Stuart Mill (Pamphlet, " England 
and Ireland") felt sorrowfully impelled still to confess: "Short of actual de- 
population and desolation and the direct enslaving of the inhabitants little was 
omitted in Ireland which could give a people cause to execrate its conqueror." 
Americans may gage the bitterness of England's resentment by the long per- 
sistence of her hostility to America, in spite of the conciliatory efforts of the 
best statesmen of both countries ; and its continued action in Ireland was demon- 
strated in May, 1916, by the brutality of the executions of the Irish rebels, then 
daily occurring in Dublin, a brutality which led the doyen of American liter- 
ature, a sincere friend of England, William Dean Howells, publicly to protest 
that mercy was still an attribute to justice. 

The triumph of America imposed another and a greater burden upon Ireland. 
Economic conditions, unrelieved by a resentful England and, in part, imposed 
by her, together with the lure of freedom, converted Ireland into a nursery for 
the great American Republic and depleted Ireland not only of her man power 
but also of the resources and energies absorbed in training citizens to the 
greater honor and glory of the United States. In the last seventy years the 
population of Ireland has sunk from S,175,124 to 4,390,219 ; over 6,000,000 people 
have left her shores, and the vast majority of these sailed for America. 

The success of the American Revolution forewarned the Government of Eng- 
land and taught them successfully to resist its repetition elsewhere. So Ire- 
land's task became more formidable, while she grew physically less able to 
accomplish it. In other words, America's triumph immeasurably increased the 
odds against Ireland. A striking example of this result is visible at present 
when Ireland is in possession of an English army of occupation which musters 
only half the number of the Irish born who fell in the American Civil War. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 109 

But in 1776 a new principle was forever established in the world, a principle 
that was assumed to he self-evident, the principle of the absolute and equal 
natural rights of man, rights derived from God alone. This principle was 
graven on Irish minds by America, when Irishmen had the honor to contribute 
greatly to its triumphant vindication on behalf of the citizens of the United 
States. The principle is obviously as applicable to Ireland as it was to America, 
and Irishmen, in spite of all handicaps, have never abated their efforts to en- 
force their right to apply it to Ireland. Since the days when she was incited by 
America to assert that right "with the expectation that our (America's) grow- 
ing weight might in turn be thrown into one scale * * * that a more equi- 
table treatment from this nation (England) might be obtained for themselves as 
well as for us," Ireland has continuously maintained her right. A succession of 
patriots in 1798, 1S03, 1848, 1867, and in 1916 " dared beyond their strength and 
hazarded against their judgment and in extremities were of an excellent hope" 
that that right might not lapse. More a small nation unaided may not accom- 
plish for freedom, and more is not necessary to establish now the unequivocal 
right of Ireland to the full and free application of President Wilson's principle 
of self-determination. 

As many Irishmen have fallen in this war as Americans. Unlike some now 
specially favored peoples, the Irish have fallen fighting only for the Allies' cause. 
If a geographical situation within the Empires of the Central Powers be not the 
only claim to freedom which is now valid, the claim of Ireland should be, at 
least in America, on an equality with the claims of other subject nations. But 
while other nations are fortunately freed, Irish leaders are held without form or 
trial or charge in English jails, an alien army occupies Ireland, martial law 
prevails there, and the press and the people are held incommunicado. Will 
Americans now recall to their minds, as Custis once exhorted them, that heroic 
time when Irishmen were their friends and when in the whole world they had 
not a friend beside? For to-day, as in the days of Grattan, America "is the 
only hope of Ireland." It is, however, a strong and confident hope, for on the 
fate of Ireland rests the whole moral structure of the Allied cause, and the 
warrant of America's President is sufficient guarantee for the integrity of that 
structure. 

THE IRISH ISSUE IN ITS ENGLISH ASPECT. 

When America, mainly to enforce in Europe her cardinal national principle 
of " government only by the consent of the governed," joined with England 
against Germany, unity of moral purpose as well as the former identity and 
unbroken community of American with Irish interests, together with the prom- 
inent part which Americans of Irish blood would inevitably play in this coun- 
try's war efforts, seemed morally to require that England should free Ireland. 
England refused. America's first objective in the war was the defeat of Ger- 
many. To attain it, the maximum effort of the Allied strength was needful, 
and was procurable only through the completely harmonious association of 
America with England. It became, therefore, impolitic for America to urge a 
denied claim upon her obdurate associate. England's refusal led the American 
authorities to regard Ireland's demand for freedom as a possible cause of dis- 
cord in American national unity ; hence, America, the belligerent, proceeded 
to discourage Ireland's demand. 

Powerful influences, both domestic and alien, were then brought to bear 
upon American pubilc opinion, and that court, so far as the case of Ireland 
was concerned, virtually abdicated its function, in favor of England. Irish 
witnesses were denied a hearing, or were allowed to testify only through Eng- 
land's advocates who, at their pleasure, suppressed, altered, or mutilated the 
Irish testimony. The Mansion House Committee, consisting of the Nationalist, 
Sinn Fein, and Labor leaders, prepared a brief of Ireland's case (June 11, 
1918), in the form of an address to President Wilson, and deputed the Lord 
Mayor of Dublin to deliver it at Washington. Because the address to the 
President was not submitted to the approval of the military governor of Ire- 
land, England refused passports for the journey ; and when the address 
ultimately reached this country, through Ambassador Page, the American press, 
with scarcely an exception, denied publicity to it. 

These facts are now cited mainly to prove that England was entirely unin- 
fluenced and unhampered in the preparation and presentation of her defense 
against Ireland's claim. The form which that defense took may, therefore, be 
presumed to be the English aspect of the Irish issue, which England desires 



110 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

every American to appreciate. And now that Germany is vanquished it; is surely 
permissible— and, perhaps, essential to America's purpose in the war — to ex- 
amine this English aspect of the Irish issue. 

England alleged, first, that Ireland was too poor to exist unaided as well as 
too weak to live undefended, and was, in fact, at the moment both subsisting 
on England's bounty and sheltering under the protection of England's army and 
navy ; secondly, that the Irish were too backward to be competent for self- 
government, but were, nevertheless, through the Irish representatives in the 
British Parliament, allowed to share in the government not only of Ireland, but 
also of Britain and of the Empire ; thirdly, that the Irish, being divided into dis- 
cordant groups of Catholics and Protestants, of Ulsterites and natives, of Union- 
ists, Nationalists, and Sinn Feiners, were notoriously incapable of agreeing 
among themselves as to the form of government they desired, and that, there- 
fore, the Irish alone were to blame for placing England, in the interests of peace 
and order, under the necessity of continuing to govern Ireland. At this point 
in the case, in response to a suggestion made by leading Americans that to 
facilitate the free development of America's war strength, as well as for 
other reasons, a settlement was desirable and might be possible (Sym- 
posium of American opinion published by the London Times April 27, 1917), 
the Prime Minister of England offered on behalf of his Government (Better 
from Mr. Lloyd George to Mr. John Redmond, May 16, 1917) a convention of 
Irishmen, and later, his pledge that " if that convention could substantially agree 
upon any form of government for Ireland, within the Empire, England would 
legalize that agreement." Certain of the Irish objected that the rider, " within 
the Empire," begged the whole question at issue. The objection was ignored ; 
and England appointed a group of Irish peers and commoners who, on April 
5, 1918, by a final vote of forty-four to twenty-nine, agreed on a plan for the 
self-government of Ireland (Official Report of the Proceedings of the Irish 
Convention, p. 172). England, on the grounds (1) that the twenty-nine in the 
minority represented the British in Ireland whom the mother country could 
not in conscience condemn to the status of irredentists, and (2) that the size of 
the majority denoted lack of " subsantial " agreement, declined to fulfil the 
Prime Minister's pledge; and, instead, proceeded to allege that the Irish issue, 
being a question solely of England's domestic policy, was a British and not an 
Irish question. In proof of this contention, conscription of the Irish solely by 
the English and against the unanimous vote of the Irish representatives in 
Commons was passed on April 17, 1918 ; therefore the Irish issue was beyond the 
jurisdiction of American public opinion. 

Lastly, Britain asserted that Ireland was an enemy both of England and of 
America, was, moreover, a friend of Germany, and was, therefore, a menace 
and should be outlawed and debarred from justice. In support of the last 
contention (1) certain events of the rising of 1916 were disinterred (chiefly 
Roger Casement's activities and the alleged attempt to land arms for the Irish 
Republicans made by the S. S. "Auk") and exposed to the public gaze; (2) an 
ex-police official of Irish birth, lately a corporal in the British army, was, first, 
mysteriously produced from an island on the west coast of Ireland where 
he was said to have landed from a German submarine, and then ostentatiously 
interned in the Tower of London; and (3) eighty-six of Ireland's leaders 
were suddenly arrested (May 19, 1918) and deported to England, without 
charge or form, under the imputation of being concerned in a German plot. 

The first remarkable feature of this English aspect of the Irish issue is its 
irrelevancy. The Irish issue, the right of the Irish to " government only by the 
consent of the governed," was neither admitted nor denied ; nor was it ever 
even discussed by England. No effort was made to prove by geography or 
history, by ethnography or tradition, by religion or customs that Ireland was an 
inseparable part of Britain. So soon after the 1916 Rebellion, England could 
not credibly allege that the Irish did not desire freedom ; nor was there avail- 
able such evidence of Irish content with things appertaining either to this 
world or to the next, and derived from English rule, as would condone that 
rule in Ireland. In brief, the morality of the English occupation of Ireland 
was not defended. Would it be permissible to infer that the English occupa- 
tion of Ireland is morally indefensible? 

It was not on the grounds of the morality but of the expediency of that occu- 
pation that sanction for it was sought by England from America. In 1914, 
when Ireland was hailed by England's Foreign Secretary, Grey, " as the one 
bright spot in the darkness of war," when Ireland's war efforts rivaled Eng- 
land's, America, at that time a neutral spectator, observed that Ireland was 



THE IRISH QUESTION. Ill 

then, rto less than she now is, denied her freedom ; and was, besides, commonly 
subject to that Zabernism which Mt. Lloyd-George later excused as arising 
from " the malignant stupidities of the War Office." The Auk, in 1916, failed 
where a Danish S. S., renamed the Fanny, and chartered by the Carsonists, had 
succeeded in 1914. On April 26 of that year the Fanny landed at Larne 50,000 
rifles, purchased from the Deutsche Munitionen und Waffen Fabrik, and shipped 
from Hamburg; and the Germans, thereby encouraged, started, in the following 
August, the world war that has just come to an end. 

Carson's activities were the incentive to Casement's. America, the reluctant 
belligerent, has doubtless judged Carson ; America, the America of Nathan Hale, 
has doubtless judged Casement also. 

The allegation that Ireland is hostile to America was too vaguely put to per- 
mit or to require refutation. Unlike the Poles, the Czechs and Slovaks, and 
others now much favored, no Irish can be accused of fighting in the German 
army. The fewness of the Irish prisoners in Germany who are stated to have 
barkened to Casement is in itself proof of Ireland's loyalty to the Allied cause. 
The English royal princes and Houston Chamberlains in the German army far 
outnumbered the suborned starving Irish captives. Friendship with Germany 
(except amongst those Ulsterites who, in 1914, invoked the aid of that great 
" Protestant Prince," the Kaiser) was and is by necessity nonexistant in an 
Ireland whose chief link with Germany is hateful memories of Hessians and 
Hanoverian kings. Moreover, Ireland alone in all the world afforded organized 
combatant aid to France in the Franco-Prussian war. Again, the enlistment — 
even at the cost of serving in the British army — of five per cent of the 4,000,000 
people of Ireland — from one-half to two-thirds of the available male popula- 
tion — not to mention the Irish casualties, far exceeding in number those re- 
ported to date (November 11) suffered by the 110,000,000 people of the United 
States, is not a sign of love for Germany. Then, too, after the United States, 
Ireland was the chief source of England's food supply in the war, surely not an 
evidence of a plot with Germany. Finally, the almost complete destruction — 
even to the final tragedy of the Leinster — by the German submarines of all 
ships plying from Irish ports, ships Irish-manned — these discreetly unempha- 
sized things are surely no evidence of friendship with the Central Powers, much 
less of conspiracy therewith. 

Concerning the German plot, the Irish pointed out that the former police 
official, the alleged submarine passenger, had landed not from a submarine col- 
lapsible but from a Ford collapsible boat made in the city of Cork ; and his trial 
for treason, in London, was not secret enough to hide the fact that he had noth- 
ing German to reveal. It was also pointed out that the Irish revolutionary 
leaders, imprisoned in England at the bare announcement of the plot, were, 
during the time that the plotting was alleged to have occurred in Ireland, actu- 
ally held in English jails because of their part in the events of 1916. Lord 
Wimborne, the Viceroy during whose administration the plotting was alleged to 
have taken place in Ireland, stated from his place in the British House of 
Lords, before the plot was announced, that the Irish were not pro-German but 
pro-Irish (November 15, 1917). After the plot was announced he denied the 
existence of any such conspiracy. And from then till now England has dis- 
closed no credible evidence of the alleged plot and has declined not only to 
bring to trial but even to charge the alleged plotters. Under the circumstances, 
is the conclusion that the alleged plot was bogus, unwarranted? Would it be 
right to contrast (1) the grounds of expediency which England used to justify 
the military occupation of a helpless Ireland thus alleged to be friendly to the 
enemy, Germany, with (2) the grounds of expediency which Bethmann-Hollweg 
with frank brutality used to justify Germany in the occupation of a helpless 
Belgium alleged to be friendly to the enemy, England? 

Nations in being vanquished are made poor and weak and are kept so to 
keep them subject. As a further military precaution, conquered peoples are 
degraded, divided, and colonized by the victor. The first four points in the 
English aspect of the Irish issue seem chiefly the stereotyped and tragic conse- 
quences of usurpation, disguised by time and perverted in origin. These four 
points sufficed both to condemn German usurpation in Poland and to justify 
English usurpation in Ireland. The colonists whom Germany had planted in 
Alsace-Lorraine served only to strengthen the French demand for restitution ; 
the colonists England had planted in Ireland — now in many cases more Irish 
and anti-English than the Irish — served only to strengthen the English denial 
of restitution there. England correctly characterized as a temporary expedient 
of evident insincerity the German decree of December 8, 1916, which appointed 



112 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

a Polish Council and deputed to that Council the drafting of a plan for the self- 
government of Poland within the German Empire. England on May 16, 1917, 
announced that she was about to appoint an Irish Convention and to depute to 
that Convention the drafting of a plan for the self-government of Ireland within 
the British Empire. Germany set up a provisional Polish Government and re- 
quested it to conscript the Poles, and Germany set up a provisional Esthonian 
Government and requested it to conscript the Esthonians, for which England 
rightfully denounced Germany. But without even this Teutonic concession to 
nationality, the British enacted conscription for Ireland. Would it be just to 
conclude that the Irish issue in its English aspect, as successfully presented to 
the American people by England, differed only in nomenclature from the Polish, 
Esthonian, Alsatian, and Belgian issues in their German aspect, as successfully 
presented by Germany to the German people? 

This English aspect of the Irish might be thought to be merely the war-fevered 
fancy of irresponsible English propagandists. But present conditions in Ire- 
land show that the conduct of the English in Ireland both conforms to the 
English propaganda here and duplicates the conduct of Germany toward her 
subject peoples. And this English conduct toward Ireland is not a new de- 
velopment, induced by the stress of war, in a sorely beset England. While 
Britain abroad was championing the cause of Greece and Hungary, Italy, and 
Poland, just as to-day she is championing the cause of — among others — the 
Czecho-Slovaks, Esthonians, Arabians, and Jugo-Slavs, and is insisting upon 
self-determination for the German African Askari, England at home held, as 
she now holds, Ireland from freedom. When circumstances compelled, England 
gave Ireland doles of liberty, and withdrew or reclaimed them when circum- 
stances permitted. In 17S2 England, in difficulties with America, France, and 
Holland, yielded to Ireland legislative independence forever; in 1800 England, 
in fewer difficulties, destroyed the independent Irish Parliament. Catholic 
emancipation in Ireland was and is vitiated by Protestant ascendancy rule. 
Nearly 100 separate coercion acts, together with periods of martial law, have 
efficiently filled the void in the English system of governing Ireland left by 
the repeal of the penal laws. The Irish in 1903 were partially restored to their 
own land, by the aid of money borrowed in England and repaid with interest 
by the Irish. The home-rule act, passed in 1913, has since remained securely 
interned among inoperative British statutes. 

It is not necessary further to multiply instances to prove that the English 
aspect of the Irish issue has ever been what it now is, the conventional aspect 
of a conqueror to a conquered people; and if to-day be any guide to the mor- 
row, England intends to continue to apply to Ireland, so far as America will 
permit, those standards which another arbitrary power was also wont to follow 
in dealing with subject peoples now happily free. America, the belligerent, 
might permit an associate much that is fortunately not American either in 
principle or in purpose, even the English aspect of the Irish issue, because of 
the necessity to substitute the American for the German aspect of certain 
other national issues deemed more urgent. The armistice is now signed ; these 
issues are in process of satisfactory rectification ; the substitution of the Ameri- 
can for the English aspect of the Irish issue, the institution in Ireland of govern- 
ment only by the consent of the people, is now in order. 

THE IRISH ISSUE IN ITS IRISH ASPECT. 

At the time of the American Revolution the statemen of America and of Ire- 
land had attained to almost the saflfie eminence of political conception, and in 
their zeal to give to their respective peoples the principle of popular freedom, 
they had gone much further than any contemporary nation. One hundred and 
forty years later America is the arbiter of the world's destinies, and Ireland 
seems to be the last, if not the least, of the world's concerns. The question in- 
evitably arises : Has Ireland affirmed her right to freedom by all the ways a 
conscious nationality can affirm that right? The answer can be found in Ire- 
land's history only. The events of that history are indisputable and undisputed. 
Such of these events as resulted from Irish action reflect the Irish aspect of 
the Irish issue. Ireland can ask no fairer presentation of her case than that 
which the Irish themselves have offered at the court of history. And America 
can seek no better guide to the nature of the Irish issue, and its Irish aspect, 
than that which history affords of the period from the end of the American War 
of Independence to the present day. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 113 

At the very beginning of that period, the first great affirmation of Irish na- 
tionality occurred : An Irish volunteer army, over 100,000 strong, was organized 
(1782). With this army Ireland was content to accept from England a parlia- 
ment endowed with "perpetual" legislative independence for Ireland. The 
mass of the Irish people were excluded from direct participation in this parlia- 
ment ; but, as it represented Irish, as distinguished from English rule. Ireland 
welcomed it, although America, more wise, had declined in 1778 a similar Eng- 
lish substitute for freedom. " In 1783, a haughty petition was addressed to the 
throne on behalf of the Roman Catholics by an association styling itself a Con- 
gress. No man could suppose that a designation, so ominously significant, had 
been chosen by accident; and by the court of England it was received, as it 
was meant, for an insult and a menace. What came next?" (De Quincey, 
"The Irish Rebellion," "Essay in Life and Manners," Boston, 1851, p. 127.) 
Next came the suborning of the planters and placemen of Ireland's Parliament, 
till, under duress and largess r they yielded their function to the English Gov- 
ernment. The Union of the Irish to the English Parliament was not legalized 
before 1800, but it had then long been effective. Defrauded of their 
perpetual legislative independence by extra-constitutional means, the Irish 
sought independence by arms (179S) ; and insurrections followed which were 
not finally crushed until 1803. The Union and the process of crushing the 
rebellions, deprived Ireland both of her planter statesmen and of her republi- 
can revolutionaries: and for a time Ireland was stunned and still and leader- 
less. Then O'Connell appeared with his scrupulously constitutional agitation 
to amend the laws by which Catholics were degraded to an inferior political 
status, an agitation that was as essentially an expression of a demand for 
political freedom as was the militant demonstration of the Volunteers, which 
extorted the 1782 Parliament. Peel explained his conversion to the cause of 
emancipation on the ground that the peasants of Clare, who he had believed 
were serfs, were the possessors of the " true and unbreakable spirit of free- 
men." Wellington frankly admitted that he supported the measure because 
" the Irish regiments were cheering for O'Connell." Then the Irish people, 
with the sympathy of Ledru Rollin in France and of President Tyler in 
America, put forward a constitutional demand for the repeal of the Union 
(1832-1S44), for the return of their legislative independence, for the resump- 
tion of that path to freedom which they had trod in the days when Prankliu 
and Washington were one with them in thought and in purpose. England de- 
feated this constitutional demand by the unconstitutional imprisonment of 
O'Connell (1844). Led by Smith O'Brien the Irish again revolted (1848). Out 
of the grave of the insurrection of 1848 arose the Feriians, a physical-force 
party pledged to an Irish republic, a party that was defeated and dispersed in 
the risings of 1S67. The Church of Ireland, mainly a hierarchy of aliens, minis- 
tering to less than a tenth of the people of Ireland, took a tithe of the coun- 
try's goods. As an instalment of freedom the Irish sought the remission of this 
tribute by the disestablishment of the Church that legally imposed it. Glad- 
stone who enacted the disestablishment in the English Common* (1868) con- 
fessed that it was the Fenians who had " rung the chapel bell," and he had 
legislated fearful of that warning. Meanwhile, a movement, through passive 
resistance, strikes and sabotage, to free the peasant from the status of chattel 
and to raise him to the level necessary for a sable national society, had spon- 
taneously developed among the Irish peasantry. The Irish were not freed by 
imperial rescript, as were the " souls " in Russia. A long and relentless strug- 
gle ensued in Ireland, which was virtually ended by the Land act of 1903. 
While this struggle was waging, the fight for legislative independence continued. 
At Westminster, Parnell stood " single handed in the ford to hack and hew an 
ancient parliament till it fell misshapen from his sword." The fight he fought 
enabled his successor, Redmond, to gain for Ireland, first, local government for 
counties in county affairs (1898) ; and, finally, that modified form of legislative 
independence which is called Home Rule. In 1912, again in 1913, and yet again 
in 1914, the British Commons passed the Home Rule bill. In 1914, it received 
the endorsement of King, Lords, and Commons. It was then " suspended." The 
Irish after this final lesson in the futility of constitutional endeavor, again re- 
sorted to arms; and the Republic of Ireland was once more proclaimed (Easter, 
1916). As a climax to this period, English-appointed courts, in suits brought 
by Dublin property owners, decreed that damage done in the 1916 revolution 
was legally the act of an usurping government in Ireland. 

H. Doc. 1832, 65-3 8 



114 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

Every legislative gain sought or achieved by Ireland was in one direction; 
every gain was the best that was obtainable, having regard to the circum- 
stances of the time; every method, whether constitutional or unconstitutional, 
was devised for one end and was designed to overcome the prevailing form 
of the opposition of England; every leader who sprang to take the place 
of him who fell or of him who was silenced by execution, deportation, or im- 
prisonment led the forces of Ireland toward the same goal. With constitution- 
alists and with rebels, in peaceful and in forceful methods, in victory and in 
defeat, through changes of leaders, weapons, strategy, and tactics, this ultimate 
purpose of Ireland remained clear and invariable. It was, it is, and it will 
always remain the vindication of the right of Ireland to government only by the 
consent of the governed. 

In this review of Ireland's history, measures initiated by the Irish to cement 
the union with England are not mentioned, for no such measures exist. Indeed, 
five times since the establishment of the American Republic the Irish have 
attempted by force of arms to found the republic of Ireland. England to 
this day professes ignorance of the Irish issue in its Irish aspect ; but there 
was always at hand in Ireland, as there now is, an English army to suppress 
the realization of the ideal of the republic of Ireland. 

In this review of Ireland's history, measures initiated by the Irish and apper- 
taining only to Ulster are not mentioned, for no such measures exist. The 
Irish leaders in this continuous struggle came from all quarters of the coun- 
try — Gavan Duffy, John Mrtchel, and John Marl in were all Ulstermen, as were 
also Isaac Butt and Roger Casement They belonged to both creeds. O'Con- 
nell, Meagher, and Pearse were Catholics; Grattan, Tone, Emmet, Fitzgerald, 
Smith, O'Brien, Davis, Mitchel, Martin, Parnell, and Casement were Protes- 
tants; and they were drawn from all classes, from Michael Davitt of the Irish 
peasantry to Edward Fitzgerald of the Irish peerage. In the ranks, too, all 
classes, creeds, and provinces loyally served. All contributed to the victories 
and participated in their results; Catholic emancipation was the emancipation 
of all by all; the Protestant Dissenter was freed with his Catholic fellow 
countryman ; (lie disestablishment of the Church of Ireland relieved of the tithe 
burden the Protestant Nonconformist no less than the Catholic; the peasantry 
of Ulster reached the status of proprietorship at the same moment as the 
peasantry of the other provinces; government of county affairs was won for 
Ulster when it was won for the rest of Ireland. And all classes, creeds, and 
provinces have sustained each other in the course of the struggle and have 
shared the burdens that could not be removed, the casualties, the executions, 
the imprisonments, the deportations, the evictions, the starvation, and the 
emigration. The struggle is unequaled in history as a struggle by a united 
nation for national freedom. 

Few nations have suffered such casualties and kept their identity; but Ire- 
land is still Irish. The spirit of Ireland's nationality was long sustained by 
the Irish priesthood. O'Connell founding reading rooms in every village and 
hamlet to educate his people. Siangan, Davis, and Duffy, together with the other 
Young Irelanders, roused by their writings that pride of race which history 
bade the Irish remember and which serfdom made them forget. Douglas Hyde 
and his Gaelio League restored her speech to Ireland and taught her the glories 
of her ancient literature. Yeats, Synge, AE, and Colum wrote the songs 
and dramas of Irish Ireland. A national theater, a thing unknown in England, 
flourished in Ireland. Pearse and McDonagh in St. Enda's School molded the 
boyhood of Ireland in an Irish mold. Eoin MacNeill and others made the 
National University and Irish university. ITunkett and Russell led the Irish 
farmer to economic independence through cooperation. And a spirit of dignity, 
discipline, self-reliance, and thrift, an Irish spirit worthy of an Irish nation, 
was fostered and maintained among the people that a free Ireland might be 
an Irish Ireland. 

Since the American Revolution roused men free of soul in every land Ireland 
in her history has consistently shown that she is a nation in the grip of a 
national ideal, the ideal of national freedom. In spite of recurrent slaughter, 
of a prison policy seldom excelled by Tsars, and of a depopulation which the 
Turk has not often rivaled and very rarely surpassed, Ireland has not wavered 
from her purpose to be free. There has been no frailty of spirit, no lack of 
energy, no want of determination, no dearth of daring, no shrinking from 
sacrifice in the affirmation of Ireland's right of national freedom. Now, at 
the end of 140 years of dauntless endeavor, when Ireland is more unconquer- 
able, more Irish, more free in spirit, and more determined to be also free in 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 115 

fact, is it likely that anything short of the full application of President Wilson's 
principles will satisfy the indomitable people of Ireland? 

Circumstances prospered America, but not Ireland, and the legal, social, and 
intellectual censorship which England exerts over the English-speaking world 
has further tended to make America unmindful of the fact that the Irish issue 
in its Irish aspect has always been identical with what was once the American 
issue in its American aspect. America now comes mighty from the vindication 
of the rights of subject peoples to national liberty. But what will it profit the 
soul of America if it gain the freedom of the whole world and suffer the loss of 
the freedom of Ireland? 

From 1782 to 1918 England has found it necessary on over 100 occasions to 
resort to coercion acts, supensions of the habeas corpus act, martial law, and 
its analogues to enforce her authority in Ireland. In 1844, 1881, and 1916 
England felt compelled to imprison the Irish leaders en masse in order to secure 
again for herself executive power in Ireland. In 1798, 1803, 1848, 1867, and 1916 
England had to reconquer Ireland, and England now holds Ireland by virtue of 
an English army of occupation under a military governor. Will not these 
war and siege measures need to be continued until Ireland be free, a nation 
once again? And if out of the war a League of Nations be formed, a league 
that lacks the nation of Ireland, may not its first duty be to aid England in 
Ireland, as the Holy Alliance aided Turkey in Greece? 

The people of Ireland have, in their isolation, set at defiance England, the 
possessor of an empire greater than that of ancient Rome, an empire to which 
400,000,000 are subject, to which the riches of the universe are tribute, of which 
the world's largest navy is guard. When England fought against and when 
England fought alongside the United States; when England was allied with 
other nations of Europe against Napoleon ; when England approved of that 
Alliance against freedom that was profanely styled Holy ; when England with 
France and Piedmont fought Russia in the Crimea to save the unspeakable 
Turk ; when' England morally supported Prussia against France in the Franco- 
Prussian War ; when England, as Ribot lately disclosed, entered an entente with 
Germany against France and Russia ; when England allied herself with Japan 
against Russia ; when England with France and Spain united against Germany 
at Algeciras; when England was associated with the victorious powers of the 
world — during all these mutations of the international hatreds and friendships 
of England, the people of Ireland were pursuing their immutable purpose of 
national freedom. If a League of Nations that lacks the nation of Ireland be 
now created, will not Ireland continue dauntlessly to pursue her purpose till 
a free Ireland be recognized as an essential member of that league or until the 
league itself shall become a thing of the past and be numbered in history among 
the fitly fleeting alliances of England? 

While America has grown to greatness ; while French empires and republics 
have arisen and passed away ; while Belgium, Greece, Italy, Rumania, Bul- 
garia, and Serbia have been born as nations and have developed into powers; 
while Spanish, Chinese, Russian, Austrian, Turkish, Mexican, and Brazilian 
empires have fallen to pieces ; while the German empire was being created, 
exalted, and destroyed ; while Norway seceded from Sweden and Iceland from 
Denmark, Ireland was persistently fighting her fight for freedom. Will not Ire- 
land continue to fight on till she be free or till the empire that is England be 
overtaken by the doom that is the fate of empires? 

But if Ireland now be paid her earned share of that freedom which is being 
squandered on the promiscuous and chance acquaintances of war — freedom 
which Redmond and Kettle and "more than 500,. i00 Irishmen" from Ireland, 
Britain, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand have fought to win; if Ireland 
now be given her place in the family of nations ; if Ireland's leaders be deemed 
worthy to appear alongside the Czecho-Slovaks and others at the peace con- 
ference; if Ireland now be enrolled as a nation in the League of Nations, would 
not America's purpose in the war acquire, what, it still lacks, absolute and un- 
qualified moral vindication? Would not the plain people of England be glad 
that at last amends had been made for an age-long national crime? Would not 
the foundling nations of the world see in the nation of Ireland a promise and a 
sign that their life of liberty was established not upon the precarious tenure 
of the shifting interests of selfish Powers, but upon the firm basis of an in- 
alienable, unalterable, and universal right? Would not the Irish pilgrims, now 
risen to greatness in every land, become disciples of the new world order, 
apostles of the new world freedom? Would not an Ireland, free to live her 
own life, to think her own thoughts, to write her own message to the world, 



116 THE IRISH QUESTION - . 

become again, as she once was, the center of Celtic culture, a nation of teachers 
and scholars, of messengers of peace and good will to all peoples, even unto the 
people of England? 

THE IEISH ISSUE IN ITS " ULSTER " ASPECT. 

"We may safely state," writes Van Tyne ("Loyalists in the American Revo- 
lution," p. 183), "that 50,000 soldiers, either regular or militia, were drawn 
into the service of Great Britain from her American sympathizers." These 
American Loyalists were drawn from the adherents of English families such as 
" the Carterets and the Penns, that had large financial interests in the coun- 
try " ; from those who " were in receipt of salaries as colonial officials " ; from 
those " whose families had so long enjoyed the emoluments of office that they 
formed a class by themselves " ; and from British military officers, pensioners, 
and their kin (Channing, " History of the United States,' Vol. Ill, p. 362). 

The present-day Ulster Loyalists are composed of English and Anglo-Irish 
peers, who have large landed v and financial interests in the country, many of 
whom, like Lord Londonberry, are descended from the men who sold the Irish 
Parliament to England; of those who, members of the vast Irish bureaucracy, 
are in receipt of salaries as Irish officials ; of those whose families have so long 
enjoyed the emoluments of office that they form a class by themselves; of cer- 
tain churchmen; and of British officers, pensioners, and their kin. Some idea 
of the Loyalism of the last class may be gathered from the fact that, even 
dining the late war for the freedom of small nationalists, in the Sixteenth, the 
famous Irish division, although ninety-five per cent of the men were National- 
ists, eighty-five per cent of the officers, and all above the lowest grades, were 
Ulsterites or other Unionists (T. P. O'Connor, House of Commons, March 7, 
1917). 

In 1776, the American Loyalists maintained that their families had been in 
possession of the land since its settlement ; that they, as loyal subjects, " trem- 
bled at the thought of separation from England," which " was as necessary to 
America's safety as a parent to its infant children " ; that they were prosperous 
because they were British"; that "the country did not want independence"; 
that the whole agitation " was due to political adventurers of the worst type" ; 
and that " the unfortunate land would be a scene of bloody discord for ages " 
if separated from England. " We were formed," said they " by England's laws 
and religion. We were clothed with her manufactures and protected by her 
fleets and her armies" (Van Tyne, " The American Revolution," pp. 86 and 87). 

To-day the Ulster Loyalists maintain that their families have been in posses- 
sion of the land since the colonizations by the Stuarts and Cromwell ; that they 
tremble at the thought of separation from England; that they are formed by 
England's laws and religion and are protected by her fleets and armies ; that 
Ireland does not want independence ; that the whole agitation is due to adven- 
turers of the worst type; that the unfortunate land would be a scene of bloody 
discord for ages if separated from England; and that the English know better 
how to govern the Irish than the Irish do themselves. " By her sheer industry 
and her connection with England Ulster has developed into the richest of the 
Provinces (of Ireland). * * * The people of Ulster love the people of 
England and will not be driven out of the United Kingdom." (Lord London- 
derry, London Times, Apr. 6, 1914.) 

Now, however, there is little dispute in Ireland as to the possession of the 
land. Even the peers who assert the contrary have been, or are in process of 
being, peacefully bought out by the Irish peasantry, Catholic and Protestant, 
Ulsterlte and non-Ulsterite, with money lent under the terms of the land acts 
of 1903 and 1909. Moreover, Ulster is not exclusively Protestant, for it contains 
690,816 Catholics (45.67 per cent) out of a population of 1,581,696; in five of 
the nine counties Catholics are in the majority and 17 of the 33 parliamentary 
representatives from Ulster are Nationalists. Besides, the Ulster Protestants 
are not wholly British ; there is a considerable admixture of descendants of the 
Huguenots, who came to Ulster after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes; 
and, as the Parliamentary returns show, many of the Protestants are Na- 
tionalists. Further, Ulster is not the richest of the Provinces; the governmental 
ratable value of Leinster per head is 98 shilling; of Ulster only 72 shillings. 
The population of Ulster fell from 2,3S9,263 in 1861 to 1,581,696 in 1910; this 
fall affects every county ; and the infantile mortality, the best index of civic 
institutions, is appalling in the stronghold of Loyalism, Belfast, where it 
chances to be higher in the Protestant than in the Catholic sections. Ulster, so 



THE IRISH QUESTION-. 117 

far from glorying in citizenship of the British Empire, led, even as late as 1910, 
in the emigration from Ireland. (Mr. John Redmond, London, Mar. 1, 1912.) 
Nevertheless, there are many prosperous Protestants in Ulster, and they are 
nearly all Loyalists. 

When America was still a colony " Protestant dissenters, descendants of the 
men who had held Londonderry, went in great numbers to America, where they 
became the most irreconcilable of those who sought separation from Eng- 
land " (Ireland To-Day, p. 82, reprinted from London Times, 1913) ; and when 
America was fighting for freedom from England these irreconcilable separatists, 
the Protestant Ulsterites, produced American leaders like Gen. Richard Mont- 
gomery and Andrew Brown. The Irish Volunteers in 1782 assembled at Dun- 
gannon, in Ulster, and, consisting in goodly proportion of Protestant Ulsterites, 
extorted from England " perpetual " legislative independence for Ireland. In 
1798, Protestant Ulsterites did some of the best fighting for the rebel cause. 
When the Ulster Protestants brotherhood with Britain was 140 years closer 
than it is to-day the chief question in Ulster was the independence of Ireland. 
Since those days there has been an apostolic succession of Ulster Protestants to 
lead the national cause in Ireland. But, nevertheless, in 1914 Lord London- 
derry and kindred peers, with certain among the manifestly prosperous in 
Ulster, pledged themselves by covenant to resist partial legislative independ- 
ence (home rule) for Ireland, set up an Ulster provisional government in Bel- 
fast, raised a volunteer corps to support that government, and thus asserted 
their right to rule Ireland on behalf of the Empire. 

" I say here solemnly," announced one Ulster Loyalist who, in 1916 was re- 
warded with the position of Solicitor General of Ireland, " that the day England 
casts me off I will say, ' England ! I will laugh at your calamity, I will mock 
when your fear cometh.' " (Belfast, May 23, 1913.) And another noteworthy 
Ulster Loyalist wrote in the Irish Churchman (November, 1913) : 

" It may not be known to the rank and file of Unionists that we have the offer 
of aid from a powerful Continental monarch, who, if Home Rule is forced on 
the Protestants of Ireland, is prepared to send an army sufficient to release 
England of any further trouble in Ireland by attaching it to his dominion, 
believing, as he does, that if our King breaks his coronation oath by signing the 
Home Rule bill, he will, by so doing, have forfeited his claim to rule Ireland. 
And should our King sign the Home Rule bill, the Protestants of Ireland will 
welcome this Continental deliverer as their forefathers under similar circum- 
stances did once before." 

So some of the prosperous Ulster Royalists seemed determined to maintain 
their sway in Ireland, even at the cost of transferring their loyalty from 
England. 

To rouse the Ulster Royalists, when Home Rule appeared imminent, the 
Rt. Hon. Walter Long, M. P., came from London to exhort them " to defend 
themselves by their own right arms and with their own stout hearts" (New- 
townards, September 26, 1912). Sir F. E. Smith, M. P., also came from London 
with the cry of "To your tents, O Israel!" Ballyclare, September 20, 1913). 
And Sir Edward Carson, with his lieutenant, Captain Craig, proclaimed that the 
Ulsterites " would fight to the last ditch, to the last man." The distinguished 
Ulster Protestant to whom was deputed the task of writing the life of Carson 
states : 

" The young men of Ulster * * * were not prepared to die in any ditch, 
first or last, in order to prevent the enactment of the Home Rule bill, and a 
reputable number of them were positively prepared to fight for its passage. 
Intimidation, ranging from threats of social ostracism to threats of dismissal 
from employment, were used to induce them to sign the covenant or join the 
Ulster Volunteers. There was talk of boycotting all Protestant Home Rulers, 
and there was an outburst of ill will among men who had previously been on 
good terms. There were shameful scenes of violence in the shipyards, where 
gangs of infuriated Orange louts attacked isolated Catholic or Protestant Home 
Rulers and subjected them to acts of outrage and brutality which can not be 
fitly described. ("Sir Edward Carson," by St. John G. Ervine, p. 56.) None 
of the business men of Ulster, old or young, had any taste for rebellion. They 
certainly had not the appetite for insurrection that their fathers had in 1798." 
(Loc. cit, p. 57.) 

No matter how it was in Ulster, there was no doubt of the feeling in 
England, where the following covenant was widely circulated for signature: 

" I, , shall hold myself justified in taking or supporting any 

action that may be effective to prevent it (the Home Rule act) being put into 



118 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

operation, and more particularly to prevent the armed forces of the Crown being 
ased to deprive the people of Ulster of their rights as citizens of the United 
Kingdom." 

Subscriptions were sought in England to support any action that might be 
effective. Long lists of signers and subscribers appeared at frequent intervals 
in the London Times and Morning Post during the spring and summer of 1914. 
The lists comprised the names of Dukes like Bedford, of Earls like Denbigh, of 
Bishops like Boyd Carpenter, of Barons, Baronets, Knights, and lesser person- 
ages; of generals such as Roberts, of admirals such as Beresford, and of their 
subordinates in the military and naval services; of financiers and of others with 
industrial and political purpose, or with social ambition. Sir Edward Carson, 
who is not an Ulsterman, who has no discoverable relatives in Ulster, who never 
represented any Ulster constituency, and who was Solicitor General for England 
from 1900 to 1906, was chosen to head the Loyalists of Ulster. Under him was 
an Englishman, General Richardson. Another Englishman, Sir F. E. Smith, 
came over to act as galloper to Carson. Retired English officers drilled the 
Carson arm. General Sir Henry Wilson, who is now head of the British War 
Office, organized it. Generals French and Gough, in command of the British 
forces at Curragh, resigned, or threatened to resign, with the officers of their 
command, if called upon by the British Government to march against their 
fellow officers, Protestants and Britishers, of the Carson army. Berlin dis- 
patches (March 31, 1914) informed the world that 50,000 rifles and 1,000,000 
rounds of ammunition, "valued at £800,000," had been snipped from Hamburg 
on March 20. " It is assumed that the rifles are for Ulster," said the London 
Times of April 1. The Fanny, with the rifles aboard, was soon reported as 
passing through the Kiel Canal. On April 27 the Times was able to announce 
that the Fanny, having successfully eluded the entire and forewarned British 
navy, had peacefully landed its munitions in Ulster and peacefully departed. 
Among British politicians Lord Milner, Lord Robert Cecil, and all prominent 
Imperialists and Unionists signed the covenant. The people of Ulster, declared 
the Rt. Hon. Joynson Hicks, M. P., at Warrington, England, on December 6, 
1913, had behind them the Unionist party. Behind them was the God of battles. 
In His name and their name, he said to the Prime Minister, " Let your armies 
and batteries fire. Fire if you dare. Fire and be damned." An English peer, 
Lord Willoughby de Broke (Norwich, November 13, 1913), publicly announced: 
" We are enlisting, enrolling, and arming a considerable force of volunteers who 
are going to proceed to Ulster to reinforce the ranks of Captain Craig and his 
brave men when the time comes." 

With a pure and avowed passion to liberate from pending partial Irish rule 
their brothers in Ulster, their Protestant coreligionists, their fellow citizens in 
the United Kingdom, their coheirs in the British Empire, the imperial aris- 
tocracy, the imperial army, the imperial navy, and the imperial politicians 
of England, fomented in Ireland the act of revolution, and, in England, publicly 
aided and abetted it. And British " jursts, professors, editors, statesmen, 
warriors, and even scientists were prolific in finding reasons for the act 
before it was committed." 

The British imperialists who organized Carsonism had previously been busy 
in the Boer War, in the liberation of Protestant Britishers from the thrall of 
Protestant Burghers. According to the Englishman, Mr. H. G. Wells, " that 
sort of British nationalism that is subsidized by rich Tories, international 
financiers, and Ulster lawyers who are neither good Irish nor good English, 
where patriotism is really ' Britain for the British exploiter,' " is " sham na- 
tionalism " (New Republic, November 23, 1918). A home rule Ireland would 
have been an Ireland without economic or judicial or political or any other inde- 
pendence, an Ireland more subject to Britain than is Canada or any of Britain's 
self-governing dominions. Hence the avowed concern for the religious, na- 
tional, and imperial rights of the people of Ulster, which was used to sanctify 
British designs in Ireland, scarcely disguises the fact that a most unjust and 
pernicious enterprise was undertaken in England to support in Ireland a revo- 
lution without legitimate motive. 

It may be recalled that in 1848 Bismarck, in the Reichstag, characterized 
the war of that year in Schleswig-Holstein, fomented by the German States, 
as " a most unjust, frivolous, and pernicious enterprise, undertaken to support 
a revolution without legitimate motive." But he subsequently planned his auto- 
cratic German Empire, and in the meantime Denmark's King had bestowed a 
democratic constitution on the Danish people. Bismarck in 18G2 founded his 
first remonstrances to the Danish Government explicitly upon its too demo- 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 119 

cratic character. At least one contemporary writer stated (Varnhagen von 
Ense, Tagebiicher, Vol. XIII, p. 42S) : " What Austria and Prussia seek at the 
hands of Denmark is not more regard to the Germanism of Schleswig-Holstein, 
they do not care much about that. But the anti-German ministry at Copen- 
hagen is democratic ; they want a reactionary one. That is the root of the mat- 
ter." So the incentive of imperialism, together with the fear of an active 
democracv on his threshold, led Bismarck to say to himself, as he confessed 
at Friedrichsruhe, May 26, 1895, that Schleswig-Holstein must be German. 
Hazen ("Alsace-Lorraine under German Rule") and others have likewise 
shown that the military and profiteering need of German imperialism, together 
with the dread of French democracy of the French Republic, was the real and 
dominant incentive to the German lust for Alsace-Lorraine. 

With Mr. Balfour's Ministry, which included Carson, Long, Bonar Law, and 
others who were later to become covenanting Carsonites, the British imperial- 
ists suffered defeat in 1906, owing to the aftermath of the Boer War and the 
attempt to introduce imperial preference. In their place a Liberal-Labor- 
Nationalist coalition appeared, which conferred old-age pensions and govern- 
ment insurance upon the working classes, reinforced the power of labor unions, 
began to reclaim the feudal estates of England for the people, and disestab- 
lished the State Church in Wales. To accomplish these reforms it was neces- 
sary to deprive the House of Lords of its summary veto over the popular will ; 
which was safely accomplished. " For good or for evil," wrote in these days 
Sir F. E. Smith, the future Carson galloper, the future Attorney General of 
England, " we are governed by a democracy. The apparent tendency is to 
extend rather than to restrict the popular character of our government. This 
country will remain democratic unless the tendency * * * be arrested by 
civil convulsions" ("Rights of Citizenship," p. 22). The imperialists failed 
by constitutional means to control this tendency in two successive elections 
within one year. They had lost the power to veto the will of the people in 
the House of Lords; but, making the home-rule bill both an occasion and 
an excuse, they provoked civil convulsions in Ireland, and conveyed that veto 
power safely to a chapel of ease in Ulster, where they created Carsonism to be 
its armed guard. They seduced the imperial army and navy so that arbitrary 
power opposed the enforcement of a statute of the democratic government of 
Britain. " The Government which gave the order * * * to enforce the 
law in Ulster would run a great risk of being lynched in London," announced 
the leader of the Unionist party, Mr. Bonar Law (London, June 18, 1912), a 
hint to incite that mob and to terrorize its indicated victims. The Rt Hon. 
Joynson Hicks, M. P., daring and damning, in the name of the God of battles 
and of the Unionist Party, the democratic government of England, disclosed 
the forces supporting his leader. And the armed volunteers raised in England 
by Lord Willoughby de Broke likewise effectively tended to restrict the popular 
character of government in England. The British incentives to Carsonism 
were not only the military and profiteering needs of imperialism in Ireland, 
but also the imperialist dread of democracy in England. 

The annexationist maxim in the days of Frederick the Great was : " Seize 
first and plenty of lawyers will justify afterwards." But with the develop- 
ment of the "Christian Science" of w T ar, war ceased to be the pursuit of an 
exclusive military caste and became instead a national function. Hence, to 
unify and strengthen the national will to war the German leaders, planning to 
rob their neighbors, organized appeals to the moral and sentimental feelings 
of the German people. Thus, before he proceeded to the conquest of Schleswig- 
Holstein. Bismarck created a popular claim to the coveted territory on the 
ground of colonization by Germans in the thirteenth century — fellow Germans 
in Schleswig-Holstein must be restored to the benefits of Teutonism and of 
German citizenship. The validity of this claim may be judged by the fact 
that on July 26, 1720, England had guaranteed perpetual possession of the 
disputed territory to Denmark, and France had done likewise in August 18, 
of the same year. Bismarck encouraged in Denmark the hope that England 
would intervene, a hope in which Denmark entered the war of 1864. As Lord 
Palmerston had no intention of intervening to save Denmark English public 
opinion on the Schleswig issue was made then by Bismarck as American public 
opinion on the Irish issue is made to-day by the Carsonites. Lord Palmerston 
was accurately reflecting the popular understanding in England when, as was 
his habit, he would say : " The question of Schleswig is so complicated and 
obscure that only three European statemen have grasped it thoroughly. The 
first of these, Prince Albert, is unhappily dead ; the second, a foreign politician, 



120 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

has lost his reason ; and the third is myself, but I have unfortunately forgotten 
it." When the time approached for the annexation of Alsace-Lorraine German 
"jurists, professors, editors, statesmen, warriors, and even scientists were pro- 
lific in finding reasons for the act before it was committed." (Hazen, loc. cit., 
p. 78). Ancient Allaman colonizations were recalled; the descendants of the 
original Teutonic colonists were identified as fellow Germans enslaved in 
France by the Treaty of Westphalia (1648) and marked down for liberation, 
for restoration to the religous, national, and prospective imperial rights of Ger- 
man citizens. And to silence any lingering scruple Treitschke taught: "The 
Germans know how to govern the Alsatians better than the Alsatians do them- 
selves." 

The complexity and obscurity of these German national issues recently 
vanished. A selectively enlightened world suddenly learned to appreciate at its 
true value this conventional plea of religious, national, and imperial rights of 
German colonists in coveted lands, and to see, at last, that there never was 
adequate reason to regard that plea as other than a most unjust, frivolous, 
and pernicious subterfuge of German Imperialism. The German Imperialist 
demonstrably had both in Schleswig-Holstein and in Alsace-Lorraine no pur- 
pose distinguishable from that which the British Imperialist still has in Ire- 
land, and still makes complex and obscure by the stereotyped plea of religious, 
national, and imperial rights of British colonists in Ulster. The world to-day 
has just paid the price of refusal to see as they were the things of yesterday. 
Will the world to-morrow need likewise to pay the price of refusal to see as 
they are the things of to-day? 

So long as England governs Ireland, the privileged, the parasitic, and the 
professional Loyalists will exercise their religious, national, and imperial right 
to administer, on behalf of the Empire, the satrapy of Ireland. So long as 
these Loyalists control in Ireland the avenues of educational, economic, and 
social preferment, they will find adherents among the ignorant and sophisticated, 
the needy and covetous, the servile and ambitious. The number and devotion 
of such adherents were revealed in the last great British recruiting campaign, in 
which all the arts of persuasion and menace, intensively applied for six months, 
brought forth from Belfast and all Ulster less than 10,000 Loyalists to save the 
Empire — that is, England — in the hour of its extremity. Fifty thousand Ameri- 
can Loyalists opposed Washington, yet America became a great and harmonious 
nation. Two million German Loyalists from Masaryk's Ulster quota in the newly 
created nation of Czecho-Slovakia. Yet the negligible number of Irish Loyalists, 
in a world where the principle of majority rule is the foundation of all democ- 
racy, is allowed to impose for their Imperial masters an insuperable veto to 
** the government of Ireland by the consent of the governed." 

In the negotiation of the Home Rule Act and in the deliberations of the 
Llovd George convention, the National leaders of Ireland manifested for the 
religious and civil rights of the Loyalist minority a solicitude that transcends 
justice, and that may worthily serve as an example to the majority rulers of 
newly freed States. Outside of its incubation place in Ulster, antagonism of 
Catholic to Protestant, of Irishman to Irishman, does not exist in Ireland. 
Major William Redmond, M. P., in his last speech to the British House of 
Commons, before he went to his grave in Flanders, irrefutably proved the 
mutual esteem and affection that united the vast armies of Irish soldiers in 
the trenches of France. Dissension in Ireland is incomparably less than dissen- 
sion in England, or France, or Italy ; and as it was in America in 1776, it is in 
Ireland to-day the work of those who desire to divide and rule. 

Washington characterized the American precursors of the Carson family as 
" abominable pests of society " and treated them as traitors. The Virginia 
House of Delegates stigmatized them as " vicious citizens against whom 
vigorous measures should be taken," and such measures were taken. Bis- 
marck replied, when asked what he meant to do with his exalted analogue of 
Carson in Sschleswig-Holstein : " It is the right of him who rears a cockerel to 
wring its neck," and that Carson was heard no more. The right of England 
to her Carson, no Irishman will care to contest. 

As soon as the disrupting force of dual allegiance ceases to act in Ireland, 
as soon as Ireland is governed only by the consent of the governed, Ulsterite 
will vie with non-Ulsterite in salutary competition to end the present exploita- 
tion of the poor, the ignorant, the credulous, and the bigoted, to eradicate 
the existing impieties of the social system of Ireland, and to make all men 
equal before the law; that selfish rights may be displaced by national duties, 
mnd that the life of everyone may conform to the first and greatest of the laws 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 121 

of the nation, the law that all Irishmen shall unite to fulfill the work of all, 
the work of the free people of Ireland in the federation of the peoples of the 
world. 

THE IRISH ISSUE IN ITS INTERNATIONAL ASPECT. 

When France under Napoleon menaced the freedom of the world, Alexander I 
of Russia held a position of detachment not unlike that which America's Presi- 
dent held on December 18, 1916, while Germany under the latest Hohenzollern 
was attempting to overwhelm the Allied Powers. Alexander was loath to 
embroil Russia in a struggle between contending Powers, whose objects in the 
war, " as revealed by their statesmen, were virtually the same." But he was 
not unwilling to help to end all war. So in 1804 he laid down as a maxim to 
the English Minister, Pitt, that the peace of Europe would never be perma- 
nently established " until ' the internal order of every country ' should be 
firmly found on ' a wise liberty as a barrier against the passions, the un- 
bridled ambitions, or the madness which often drive out of their senses those 
in whom power is vested.' " He proposed that such States as wisely laid their 
foundations in liberty should, on the cessation of the war then raging, form a 
League of Nations, all the members of which would guarantee to each the pos- 
sessions of each, in order that there might be no " future attempts to disturb 
the general tranquillity" (Phillips, "The Confederation of Europe," London, 
pp. 34-38). At that time Ireland had just passed through the rebellion of 1798, 
the sale of the Irish Parliament by Castlereagh to England (1800) and the 
Emmet rebellion of 1803. The Irish issue was the obvious test of England's 
conception of " wise liberty." But without either applying this test or seeking 
such an adequate guarantee of England's sincerity as the freedom of Ireland 
would have given him, Alexander entered the war and was a determining, if 
not the dominant, factor in the overthrow of Napoleon. When the cessation of 
hostilities came, although the servitude of Ireland remained as a symbol of 
oppression, a pledge against peace, the plain people everywhere " promised them- 
selves an all-embracing reform of the political system of Europe, guarantees 
for peace; in one word the return of the Golden Age" (Gentz, "Congress of 
Vienna," quoted by Lipson, "Europe in the Nineteenth Century," p. 212). But 
" Great Britain was concerned only with an immediate and practical object, the 
ending of the war. It is clear that the English Minister meant that only France 
should not be allowed to disturb the future settlement of Europe by ' fresh 
projects of aggrandizement and ambition ' " (Lipson, loc. cit, p. 212). 

The Peace Congress met at Vienna, and with the nation broken, Castlereagh, 
acting for Great Britain, resulted in nothing but restorations; agreements be- 
tween great Powers of little value for the future balance and preservation of 
the peace of Europe and quite arbitrary alterations in the possessions of the 
less important States. No act of higher nature, no great measure for public 
order or for universal good which might make up for Europe's long sufferings 
or reassure it as to the future was forthcoming. For the only guarantee of 
the sincerity of the participants was that given, perforce, by France in her 
exhaustion. 

Since then the periodic cessation of war has come so often to the world that 
men have lost count of its comings. In every truce the hopeful have seen again 
the vision of Isaias, of a world united in peace ; and in every fresh outbreak of 
war men have been lured to death by rulers who promised to pinion peace 
with their sword. The plain peoples of to-day in the Allied no less than in 
the American ranks were led to battle in order that the supremacy of right 
over might should be finally vindicated, that small nationalities might thereby 
by freed from the oppression of usurping Powers and that henceforth the free 
peoples of the world might unite in equality as members of a League of Na- 
tions, a League which would exercise common political sovereignty solely to 
the end that war should forever cease. They have won the war, but peace is 
yet to be won or lost. Dominating the Peace Conference are the Government 
of America and the Government of the British Empire. America's President 
before the war, at the acceptance of war, during the war, and since the 
cessation of hostilities has unequivocally stated his purpose to seek the final 
elimination of war. Plain peoples of the world believe in him, trust in him, 
but fear for him, lest, like Alexander I of Russia, his purpose be defeated, so 
that millions of lives must be squandered again to reach this same stage on 
the road to universal peace. And the basis of their fear is the symbol, Ireland. 



122 THE IEISH QUESTION. 

The task of the conferring Governments is to restore and to make permanent 
the peaceful equilibrium of the world. In the past England has been the center 
of that equilibrium, which when disturbed by Spain, Holland, France, or Ger- 
many led Britain to war, and the disturbing elements were thereby reduced 
to balanced proportions, in leagues, alliances, ententes, and associations. Eng- 
land, conqueror of Africa, Palestine, Arabia, Persia, and the German colonies; 
and possessor of Ireland, Canada. Newfoundland, the West Indies, Australia, 
New Zealand, India, Ceylon, and Burmah, has now become empress of the world. 
Yet it is actually proposed that she grant self-determination to the world and 
forego her supremacy in favor of a league of which the component States, small 
and great, shall enjoy equality with her before the law of nations. In this 
league each nation will arm for domestic order only, and all will contribute 
to a common force that will guarantee the world's peace. The unit of State 
proposed for the league is called a nation. It is implicit in the idea of a unit 
that it should be indivisible, self-supportng, and able to sustain its share of the 
common burden. This unit has been further qualified as constituted by people 
" governed only by the consent of the governed." 

Among the nations of the world the Irish are unsurpassed in the sum of their 
distinguishing characters of speech, race, customs, and traditions. They take 
historical precedence over all nations, except the nations of Greece and Italy; 
they inhabit a country unique in" its geographical separateness from all others 
and greater in area than Greece, Serbia, Switzerland, Denmark, Holland, or 
Belgium. Ireland contains more people thau Greece, Switzerland, Finland, 
Serbia, Denmark, or Norway. Unless the word nation has lost its traditional 
significance and has become a term of opprobrium conferred only upon peoples 
hitherto fighting in the service of the Central Empires, Ireland is a nation. 
The nationhood of Ireland is not dependent upon admission to any league of 
Powers. A league avowedly founded on nationhood undermines its own basis 
by the exclusion of Ireland; and its selective character makes of it merely a 
league of rulers, an entangling alliance to embroil peaceful members in all the 
wars on the seven seas. 

■In less than a century, Ireland, in addition to paying out of her own taxes the 
whole of her own cost, has been made to pay to the maintenance of the imperial 
army and navy of England a sum of £325,000,000 ($1,725,000,000) (Mr. John 
Redmond, House of Commons, April 11, 1912.) Ireland's annual foreign trade, 
almost exclusively monopolized by England, exceeds that of Switzerland, Swe- 
den, Norway, Finland, Portugal, Greece, or Serbia, and almost equals the for- 
eign trade of Denmark (Stateman's Year Book, 1913). The exclusion of a great 
and historic nation, which is an indivisible State unit, which even under pres- 
ent conditions is able to pay the sum exacted to support the one Imperial navy of 
the world, and which has a yearly foreign trade of $737,750,000, would weaken 
the stability of any aggregation of less compact States, increase the pro rata 
burden borne by the selected members for the support of the League, and de- 
prive the League of a considerable part of the world's commerce. 

The inclusion of Ireland as a nation would mean the loss to England of her 
most treasured possession. True, a war has just been fought in which English 
statesmen from Sir Edward Grey to Mr. Lloyd George have avowed their essen- 
tial purpose to be the freedom of small nations. But in a war between empires 
a subject nation forms a part where each empire is vulnerable, and where the 
victor can conveniently disarticulate the vanquished. A subject nation, such as 
Czecho-Slovakia, that has the happiness to have been a component part of a de- 
feated and dismembered empire, thereby receives at least titular freedom. A 
subject nation such as Ireland, that has the misfortune not to have been a com- 
ponent part of the conquered Empire, receives the treatment Ireland is now 
receiving. To give moral sanction to the freeing of Poles, Czecho-Slovaks, and 
other peoples lately subject to Germany or Austria, either the victorious Empire 
itself must free Ireland or else those other nations which associated themselves 
with England and were privileged to devote their lives, their honor, and all they 
were and had to the avowed purpose of the war, must decree the freedom of 
Ireland from England, as in 1831 the freedom of Belgium from Holland was 
decreed. In any event, the exclusion of Ireland must mean the exclusion of 
England, too, from a league of free peoples, of peoples " governed only by the 
consent of the governed." For an England dragging in chains the nation of 
Ireland " could not be trusted to keep faith within the League or to observe 
its covenants." 

Besides moral sanction, a League of Nations will need the sanction of force. 

" It will be absolutely necessary that a force be created, as a guarantor of 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 123 

the permanency of the settlement so much greater than the force of any 
nation now engaged in any alliance hitherto formed or projected, that no 
nation, no probable combination of nations, could face or withstand it." 
(January 22, 1917, " Message to the Senate.") 

Force can be created, but it can not be thriftily or effectively applied except 
through the control of strategic bases. Concerning Ireland as a base, the 
British " Navy League " — " from which the German Navy League drew its 
impulse" (Mahan, "America's Interest in International Conditions," p. 171) — 
in a manifesto issued on January 10, 1918, stated : 

" Before the great war the security of the Irish ports was wrongly regarded 
by the majority of the British people as a partisan British interest. The 
scales fell from our eyes after war broke out. A clear vision of the sacrifices 
of great and small nations fighting for freedom revealed the relation between 
Ireland and world trade. The strategic unity of the British Isles is a world 
problem, not merely a British interest. The trade of Europe with Canada, 
the United States, the West Indies, the Gulf of Mexico, the Panama Canal, 
the Caribbean Sea, all the Republics of South America, all the States of the 
Australian Commonwealth, New Zealand, China, Japan, Russia in the Pacific, 
India, Ceylon, and Africa are dependent directly upon the control of Irish 
seaports and the communications behind them. The British people before 
the war were mistaken in regarding Queenstown, Bantry Bay, Valencia, and 
Lough Swilly as merely British interests. Ireland has eighteen harbors, five 
of them first class. The best of them face the Atlantic Ocean, which floats 
the trade of the world. Friendly naval control of Irish harbors by free nations 
is essential to the freedom of the world. The ocean of the air, the surface of 
the sea, and underwater attack or defense will be controlled * * * from 
Irish Western ports." 

Even if the League create a navy so large that the burden of its support 
would strain the loyalty of the members, the strategic position of Japan with 
her ally England, acting from Ireland as a base, would enable these Powers 
together to defy any force that the League might bring against them. So long 
as Ireland is controlled by England the equilibrium of the world will remain 
centered on her, and a League of Nations will exist at her pleasure as an 
auxiliary to her purpose. Ireland a " Heligoland of the Atlantic, would 
menace the Atlantic coast of the American Continent from Punta Arenas in 
Patagonia to Quebec. Therefore naval control of IreLand by a naval repre- 
sentative of the free nations of the world is essential to the freedom of the 
world. Ireland is truly the key of the Atlantic, a fortress that guards the 
main trade routes of the world." (Loc cit, Jan. 10, 1918.) 

A free Ireland, as is so eloquently and conclusively shown by the British 
Navy League, is a member essential to any League of Nations. It is, indeed, 
the one indispensable member, the member vital to the League, the member 
whose absence would leave undetermined only the moment of the League's 
disintegration, only the name of the Power which would next dare to disturb 
the possessor of Ireland, the center of the world's equilibrium. Without a 
free Ireland, the force of the League can not control the world ; without such 
controlling force there can be no League of Nations; without a League of 
Nations there can be no permanent peace; and without permanent peace plain 
peoples have been privileged to dedicate their lives and possessions to what? 
The freedom of Ireland will be the sign of the freedom of the world from war. 
Is there any guarantee that this sign will be given to the world ? 

America, presuming that her associates at least " were as candid and straight- 
forward as the momentous issues involved required," did not deem it necessary 
" to assure herself of the exact meaning of the note of " acceptance of Eng- 
land's Government before the armistice was signed. America likewise did not 
deem it necessary " in order that there might be no possibility of misunder- 
standing very solemnly to call the attention of " the Government of England 
"to the evident principle which runs through the whole American program." 
It is contained in the "Address to Congress " of January 8. " It is the prin- 
ciple of justice to all peoples and nationalities and their right to live on terms 
of liberty and safety with one another whether they be strong or weak." Yet 
even when the armistice was being signed England was affirming, as through- 
out the war England has affirmed, and as she is to-day affirming by all the ways 
an autocratic empire can affirm it, her complete consciousness of the distinct 
national entity — Ireland. In the Peace Conference " the good faith of any 
discussion manifestly depends upon the consent " of his Britannic Majesty's 
Government " immediately to withdraw its forces everywhere from the in- 



124 THE IRISH QUESTION". 

vaded territory " of Ireland ; to liberate those whom by deportation and 
imprisonment England has recognized as the leaders of the Irish nation; and 
to permit the people of Ireland freely to determine by plebiscite the form of 
their government. No such guarantee of good faith was required from, or 
proffered by England; and she reserved the question of the freedom of the 
seas for discussion. As it was in 1814, so in 1918, " it is clear that Great 
Britain was concerned only with an immediate and practical object, the ending 
of the war." The English Minister meant that only Germany " should not be 
allowed to disturb the future settlement of Europe by fresh projects of 
aggrandizement and ambition." 

Just as America enters the Peace Conference, Ireland entered the war without 
guarantees of good faith from England. Ireland had no shipping vainly seeking 
passage through forbidden seas. The only invader on Irish soil was England. 
And Ireland refused to be terrorized into war by fear of facing unaided the 
remote contingency of invasion by Germany. According to J. I. C. Clarke, 
480,000 Irishmen fought and died for Prance between 1690 and 1792. The 
only entry on the other side of the ledger was the 280 Frenchmen lost by 
Humbert in the rebellion of 1798. Belgium in the S3 years of her existence 
had spared not a man, a dollar, or an audible articulate thought for the free- 
dom of Ireland. If instead of Belgium and Prance, Ireland had been invaded, 
what help would Ireland have received from one or other of these countries? 
Neither interest nor gratitude nor yet kinship called for a single Irishman to 
fight in the war. No power could take, and no power has been able to take, 
a single Irish national to fight in France against his free will. But Irishmen 
thought that if Germany won Belgium would become what they " mourned 
in Ireland, a nation in chains." The fight seemed to be one of justice against 
might for the freedom of small nationalities. In such a fight " Ireland," said 
Professor T. M. Kettle, who fell at Guinchy, " had a duty not only to herself 
but to the world * * * and whatever befell, the path taken must be the 
path of honor and justice." Concerning the number of Irishmen who took this 
vouched-for path of duty before America entered the war, Mr. John Redmond, 
M. P., wrote : 

" From Ireland, according to the latest official statistics, 173,772 Irishmen are 
serving in the navy and army. * * * Careful inquiries made through the 
churches in the North of England and in Scotland, and from other sources, 
show that, in addition, at least 150,000 sons of the Irish race, most of them 
born in Ireland, have joined the colors in Great Britain. It is a pathetic cir- 
cumstance that these Irishmen in non-Irish regiments are forgotten except 
when their names appear in the casualty lists." 

Adding to these the other young men of Ireland who, compelled by the 
economic conditions at home to seek elsewhere the means to exist, had emigrated 
to Canada, Newfoundland, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, and who 
had enlisted in their adopted countries, Mr. Redmond estimated that there were 
"more than half a million Irishmen with the colors." ("Ireland on the 
Somme," London, 1917, pp. 3-8.) This number — 500,000 — represents about one- 
tenth of the Irish born outside this country — and they fought as volunteers. 
They took the indicated path to justice and went to war as Irish " International 
Nationalists," believing that the greater freedom would include the less. Their 
number exceeded the volunteers of any other land ; proportionately they repre- 
sented an army of 11,000,000 Americans. They went to their graves in France 
and Gallipoli believing that the Irish issue in its international aspect was an 
integral part of the new international aspect of all national issues, the right to 
government only by the consent of the governed. The Irish from their unassail- 
able position of racial detachment and material disinterestedness were the only 
people in the world who could give the Allied cause moral vindication, and they 
gave it without requiring England to consent immediately to withdraw from 
Ireland, without fulfilling the w r orld duty of obtaining a guarantee that the war 
would be waged in good faith. 

Graciously acknowledging the belligerent value of this international aspect 
of the Irish issue, Lord Kitchener, the British War Lord, wrote to the Dublin 
"Viceregal Conference (1915): "Ireland's performance has been magnificent." 
" England is unworthy to kiss the hem of Ireland's garment," wrote the English 
litterateur, Chesterton, moved by the spectacle of a subject nation voluntarily 
fighting for international freedom alongside its oppressor. " Whatever the 
future may have in store, the British people will never forget the generous 
blood of the sister nation which has been shed on so many hard-fought battle 
fields," said the London Daily Telegraph, March 18, 1916. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 



125 



The war report of a subject nation in an imperial war is published when to 
publish it is useful and is altered or suppressed when necessary for the benefit 
of the Empire. The significance of the record may not have varied, but the 
accounting is in the hands of the imperial bookkeepers ; there are no auditors ; 
the report is published by those who compile it, for their own ends. Hence, 
although England's gratitude to the sister nation of Ireland was still ringing 
in men's ears — although, too, the survivors of the 500,000 Irish were still fight- 
ing abroad for international freedom, from the day (Easter, 1916) when the 
Irish felt compelled to wrest from England a guarantee of good faith, to fight 
in Ireland, too, in the name of right against might, in the name of the freedom 
of small nationalities, of the cause of international justice — the war report of 
the Irish was " Pigotted " in the press which England controlled throughout the 
world. And a grateful England shot as felons Pearse and his fellow poets and 
seers, condoned the murder of Sheehy Skeffington and others, imprisoned Coun- 
tess Markiewicz, Professors MacNeill and De Valera, and a thousand more, 
hanged and libeled Casement, placed an army of occupation in Ireland, put the 
country under martial law, and gave full imperial recognition to the subject 
nation of Ireland before the silent but comprehending gaze of the suffering 
people of Belgium. Prior to the revolution of 1916 there had been lacking an 
international standard by which to test the solicitude of England for the free- 
dom of small nationalities, a lack which the revolution supplied. Ireland meas- 
ured England's avowed cause by that standard, and then unaided continued the 
fight for small nationalities on the Irish front, a front to which the recent 
armistice was not extended. 

When America entered the war the Irish-born here felt that President Wilson 
had made holy again the Allied cause, had made the Irish issue once more an 
inalienable part of the international aspect of all national issues. They felt 
that it was the duty of everyone in America to fight for the freedom of all, the 
freedom for which America's President had pledged his word. Cobelligerent 
aliens who were called in the draft then possessed the right to claim exemption 
as aliens. The following percentages, computed from the Provost Marshal 
General's Report (Appendix 33a) show the fashion in which this duty was 
accepted by the nationals of the several cobelligerent aliens. The percentages 
of the alien cobelligerents called who waived exemption and were accepted are 
as follows: 

Ireland 30. 4 Serbia 21. 7 

Belgium 24.4 Canada 21.0 

Scotland 24. 2 France 19. 4 

England 22. 5 Italy 16. 8 

Wales 22. 

Alexander of Russia sought and received no guarantees from England, and 
experienced the Congress of Vienna. Ireland sought and received no guaran- 
tees from England, and is now the only nation in the civilized world that is still 
being actively subjugated by an imperial power. America sought and received 
no guarantees from England, and the consequences are yet unrevealed. 

But certain dominant English statesmen now openly oppose the principles 
they formerly loudly professed or tacitly accented and for which this war was 
fought. The British Coalition Government has issued an election address 
antagonistic to the Wilson principles of the new world order. The Populo 
Romano (Dec. 4) publishes that Italy has joined England and France in an 
entente. The Allied Premiers have met, have secretly deliberated and publicly 
made announcement of their agreement. To at least this extent plain people 
are now forewarned. Analogous anticipatory secret deliberations, from which 
Russia was excluded, occurred at the end of the Russo-Turkish war in 1879, 
but it was only when the Peace Congress of Berlin was far advanced, and when 
by long preparatory maneuvering the way had been cleared for the announce- 
ment, that Europe was permitted to learn of the bargain made prior to the 
public Peace Congress, the bargain by which England in return for the long- 
coveted Island of Cyprus, guaranteed Turkey virtual integrity. Already 
tentative divisions of territory have been publicly and authoritatively sug- 
gested in the manner of the Congress of Vienna, in the manner of the Congress 
oi Berlin, America has been party neither to these anticipatory deliberations 
nor to these munition mongers' suggestions. Will America's President be alone 
at the Peace Congress " speaking for friends of humanity in every nation and 
of every program of liberty * * * for the silent mass of mankind every- 
where who have as yet had no place or opportunity to speak their real hearts 



126 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

out concerning the death and ruin they see to have come upon the persons 
and homes they hold most dear " ? He has gone to uphold the principles and 
policies for which he led Americans to spend their lives, their honor, and 
their possessions. The seclusion of serried cordons of armed guard may sur- 
round the conference ; and its diplomacy may be shrouded by a censored press. 
But plain people everywhere will know how to judge the President's progress. 
There is one tested standard and only one by which the Allied cause may be 
judged, a standard by. which every principle President Wilson has enunciated 
may be measured, a standard by which the present may be weighed with the 
past and the future may be estimated, the standard of Ireland. Covenants and 
the principles by which these are arrived at may or may not be open, and 
diplomacy may always remain frankly hidden from the public view. For, 
first, there can be no " absolute freedom of the seas outside of territorial 
waters, alike in peace and in war," without the freedom of Ireland; secondly, 
there can be no " removal, so far as is possible, of all economic barriers," with- 
out the freedom of Ireland ; thirdly, there can be no " adequate guarantees 
given and taken that national armaments will be reduced to the lowest point 
consistent with safety," without the freedom of Ireland; fourthly, there can 
be no " general association of nations formed under specific covenants for the 
purpose of affording mutual guarantees of political independence and terri- 
torial integrity in great and small States alike," without the freedom of Ire- 
land ; and lastly, there can be no moral application of " the principle of jus- 
tice to all peoples and nationalities, and their right to live on equal terms of 
liberty and safety with one another whether they be strong or weak," without 
the freedom or Ireland. " Unless this principle be made its foundation no part 
of the structure of international justice can stand." Hence, by the standard of 
plain people, President Wilson must seek first the freedom of Ireland and all 
things else shall be added unto him. 

Belgium a nation again is music to Irish ears. The free soil of France 
affords at least a grave worthy of the freemen of Ireland. The liberation of 
Poland gives gladness nowhere greater than in Ireland. Even from the waters 
of Babylon, Ireland welcomes the Jew to Zion. For Ireland, though fated to 
be the symbol and shield of empire, has faith in her freedom. • She knows how 
to fight and pray, till the day of empires shall pass, till freedom shall come to 
the latest of nations, shall come even unto the last, when an Ireland free shall 
be given to the peoples as a sign that a message 2,000 years old, the message 
of peace and good-will on earth, has been heard and heeded by men. 



The Sinn Fein Platform. 

The Sinn Fein Convention of 1917 met in Dublin in session from October 
24-27. There were 1,700 delegates present from every county in Ireland. They 
reported 1,099 clubs of Sinn Fein, with a membership of 250*000. 

The following platform was adopted : 

"Article I. Whereas the people of Ireland never relinquished their claim to 
separate nationhood ; and 

" Whereas the Provisional Government of the Irish Republic at Easter, 1916, 
in the name of the Irish people, and continuing the fight made by previous 
generations, reasserted the inalienable right of the Irish nation to sovereign 
independence, and reaffirmed the determination of the Irish people to achieve 
it; and 

" Whereas the proclamation of the Irish Republic at Easter, 1916, and the 
supreme courage and glorious sacrifices of the men who gave their lives to 
maintain it have united the people of Ireland under the flag of the Irish 
Republic: Be it 

" Resolved, That we, the delegated representatives of Irish people, in con- 
vention assembled, hereby declare the following to be the constitution of Sinn 
Fein: 

" 1. The name of the organization shall be Sinn Fein. 

"2. Sinn Fein aims at securing international recognition of Ireland as an 
independent Irish Republic. Having achieved that status the Irish people may 
by referendum freely choose their own form of government. 

"3. This object shall be attained through the Sinn Fein organization, which 
shall in the name of the Sovereign Irish people (a) deny the right and oppose 



?THE IRISH QUESTION. 127 

the will of the British Parliament, and tlie British Crown or any other foreign 
government to legislate for Ireland; (b) make use of any and every means 
available to render impotent the power of England to hold Ireland in subjec- 
tion by military force or otherwise. 

"4. Whereas no law, without the authority and consent of the Irish people 
is or ever can be binding on their conscience ; therefore, in accordance with the 
resolution of Sinn Fein, adopted in the convention of 1915, a constituent assembly 
shall be convoked, comprising persons chosen by Irish constituencies as supreme 
national authority to speak and act in the name of the Irish people, and to de- 
vise and formulate measures for the welfare of the whole people of Ireland, 
such as 

"(A) The introduction of a prospective system for Irish industries and 
commerce by combined action of the Irish councils, urban councils, rural 
councils, poor-law boards, harbor boards, and other bodies directly responsible 
to the Irish people ; 

"(B) The establishment and maintenance under the direction of the National 
Assembly or other authority approved by the people of Ireland, of an Irish con- 
sular service for the advancement of Irish commerce and Irish interests gen- 
erally ; 

"(C) The reestablishment of an Irish mercantile marine to facilitate direct 
trading between Ireland and the countries of Continental Europe, America, 
Africa, and the Far East ; 

" D) An industrial survey of Ireland and development of its mineral re- 
sources under the auspices of the National Assembly or other national authority 
approved by the people of Ireland ; 

"(E) The establishment of a national stock exchange; 

"(F) The creation of a national civil service embracing all employees of 
county councils, rural councils, poor law boards, harbor boards, and other bodies 
responsible to the Irish people by the institution of a common, national qualify- 
ing examination and local competitive examinations, the latter at the discretion 
of the local bodies ; 

"(G) The establishment of Sinn Fein courts of arbitration for the speedy and 
satisfactory adjustment of disputes; 

"(H) The development of transit by railroad and water, and of waste lands 
for the national benefit by a national authority approved by the people of Ire- 
land; 

"(I) The development of the Irish Sea fisheries by the National Assembly 
or other national authority approved by the people of Ireland ; 

"(J) The reform of education to render its basis national and industrial by 
the compulsory teaching of the Irish language, Irish history and Irish agricul- 
ture and manufacturing potentialities in a primary system, and, in addition, to 
elevate to a position of dominance in the university system Irish agriculture 
and economics ; 

"(K) The abolition of the poor-law system and the substitution in its stead 
of adequate out-door relief to the aged and infirm and employment of the able- 
bodied in the reclamation of waste lands, afforestation, and other national and 
reproductive works. 

"Article 2. Where Irish resources are being developed or where industries 
exist Sinn Feiners should make it their business to secure that workers are 
paid living wages. 

"Article 3. That equality of men and women in this organization shall be 
emphasized in all speeches and leaflets." 

Mr. Gallagher. I don't feel that I ought to impose on the com- 
mittee any longer, and I want to thank them for the generous atten- 
tion which they have accorded us. I have a list of the names of the 
people here who would like to put their remarks in the record. 

Mr. Rogers. I dislike very much that any citizen of the United 
States should come here to Washington and should be compelled to 
go away without having expressed his views, even briefly. I don't 
know how other members feel about it, but my own impression is 
that we ought to stay here and let those gentlemen express their 
views. 



128 THE IEISH QUESTION. 

Thereupon it was agreed that the committee should remain in 
session until 1 o'clock p. m., and as long thereafter as might be neces- 
sary to hear other speakers. 

Rev. Thomas J. Hurton, of Philadelphia, Pa. The gentleman 
(Mr. Fox) spoke of three Popes. I want to say that the Irish Na- 
tion will not be dictated to by anybody, whether it be a Pope or our 
friend from Connecticut. The people of Ireland are free men and 
will vote for their own form of government. 

STATEMENT OF HON. AUGUSTINE LONERGAN, A REPRESENTA- 
TIVE IN CONGRESS FROM CONNECTICUT. 

Mr. Lonergan. I just want to ask you a question, if you are willing 
to express yourselves on the point, and that is as to whether or not 
there is any doubt in the minds of any of you gentlemen as to the 
jurisdiction of your committee and of Congress to act on any one of 
the resolutions pending here. 

The Chairman. Is that an examination? 

Mr. Lonergan. No, sir. 

The Chairman. Have you any doubts? 

Mr. Lonergan. I have not. 

The Chairman. You are satisfied that the body that had the power 
to declare this war, fight it through to a successful conclusion, and 
who must approve any settlement made in France has the power at 
least to suggest to those commissioners? 

Mr. Lonergan. That is it exactly. And I haven't heard anyone 
touch upon the point. 

The Chairman. I haven't heard any expressions of the committee 
members that they had any doubt of jurisdiction. We would be 
glad to hear you. 

Mr. Fox. May I say, sir, that I haven't the slightest doubt that 
Congress has that right. 

Mr. Lonergan. I infer from the chairman's statement that the 
gentlemen of the committee have no doubt, and there isn't any use 
in arguing along that line. 

Any measure that is pending in Congress of the importance such as 
the resolution which we are considering here I am sure attracts 
country-wide attention. I know of no Member of Congress who has 
received protests from his constituents as to action on the part of this 
committee or on the part of Congress on one of the pending resolu- 
tions; and that being so, we may infer that the American people 
want favorable action on the part of this committee and on the part 
of Congress on one of them, whichever one you gentlemen agree upon. 
I hope that early and favorable action will be taken. My limited 
time does not permit of extended remarks. The representatives of 
the American people merely ask the representatives of our Nation 
at the peace conference to take up the question of the self-determina- 
tion of Ireland. 

STATEMENT OF MR. JOHN P. LEAHY, OF ST. LOUIS, MO. 

Mr. Leahy. I represent a large number of men of Irish birth and 
blood in St. Louis of all professions and occupations and, in addi- 
tion to that, some of the labor unions, and we have come here to ask 



THE IBISH QUESTION. 129 

you to pass this resolution. I feel there is one thought I should 
impress upon you — that the present British Government has, by its 
present spokesman, admitted its inability to settle this question. 
That is because they fail to apply the only rule by which it can be 
settled — the rule and principle which guide the deliberations of the 
Government we belong to, namely, majority rule. We ask them to 
give the Irish people the right to apply the rule of the majority to de- 
termine the form of government under which they desire to live. I 
can speak for myself and, I think, for every man that is here and for 
every man of our race in America, when that question is submitted 
to the Irish people and fairly determined by them, we shall accept 
the decision they make in the matter as the final decision on the Irish 
question. 

STATEMENT OF PEOF. JOSEPH DUNN, OF THE CATHOLIC 
UNIVERSITY, WASHINGTON, D. C. 

Prof. Dunn. I speak for the Catholic University of America, of the 
faculty of which I am a member. I wish to read, for insertion in the 
record, a letter from Et. Kev. Thomas J. Shahan, rector of the uni- 
versity, to the President on this question, as follows : 

The Catholic University of America, 
Washington, D. C, November SO, 1918. 
Hon. Woodrow Wilson, 

President of the United States. 

Your Excellency: You are about to depart for Europe, to be at the Peace 
Conference what you were during the trying days of war, the spokesman and 
the interpreter of the lovers of liberty in every land. The burden now rests 
upon you of giving practical application to the principles of justice and fair 
dealing among nations which, as expounded in your many noble utterances, 
have made our country more than ever in its history the symbol of hope to all 
oppressed nations. Wherefore, we, the rector and faculties of the Catholic 
University of America, take this opportunity to address you and to ask respect- 
fully that in this historic gathering you be the spokesman for the immemorial 
national rights of Ireland. Your influence will certainly go far toward a final 
acknowledgment of the rightful claims of Ireland to that place among the 
nations of the earth from which she has so long and so unjustly been excluded. 
We are convinced that any settlement of the great political issues now involved 
which does not satisfy the national claims of Ireland will not be conducive to a 
secure and lasting peace. You have said, " No peace can last, or ought to last, 
which does not recognize and accept the principle that governments derive all 
their just powers from the consent of the governed." Disregard of the rights 
of small nations has aroused a spirit of righteous indignation which can never 
be appeased as long as any nation holds another in subjection. Subjection and 
democracy are incompatible. In the new order, " national aspirations must be 
respected ;" peoples may now be dominated and governed only by their own 
consent. ' Self-determination ' is not a mere phrase." 

In keeping with these words of truth, we hold that the right of Ireland to 
" self-determination " is immeasurably stronger than that of any nation for 
which you have become the advocate. Moreover, Ireland's claims are a hun- 
dredfold reenforced by her centuries of brave, though unavailing, struggle 
against foreign domination, tyranny, and autocracy. The manner in which the 
national rights of Ireland will be handled at the Peace Conference is a matter 
of deep concern to many millions of people throughout the world, and it is no 
exaggeration to say that the purpose of the United States in entering the war, 
namely, to secure a world-wide and lasting peace, will surely be nullified if a 
large and influential body of protest remains everywhere as a potent source of 
national friction and animosity. 

That such unhappy feelings may not remain to hinder and embitter the work 
of the world's political, social, and economic reconstruction, we ask you to use 
your great influence at the Peace Conference to the end that the people of 

H. Doc. 1832, 65-3 9 



130 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

Ireland be permitted to determine for themselves through a free and fair 
plebiscite the form of government under which they wish to live. 

With most cordial sentiment of respect and esteem, I remain, very sincerely 
yours, 

Rt. Rev. Thomas J. *Shahan, 
Rector of the Catholic University of America. 

Dr. Dunn. Although this letter was presented to the President on 
the opening day of the present session of Congress, and although the 
President was overwhelmed with cares and burdens on that last day 
before he sailed, he not only acknowledged receipt of the bishop's 
letter, but replied in such a sympathetic tone as would make inter- 
esting reading for the members of this honorable committee. 

Mr. Lynch. In view of the fact that the name of Justice Victor J. 
Dowling has been mentioned here to-day, I wish to state that he 
signed the petition sent to President Wilson by the Friendly Sons 
of St. Patrick of New York, of which he is president, urging self- 
determination for Ireland. 

STATEMENT OF REV. PATRICK A. SHARKEY, OF SYRACUSE. 

Kev. Father Sharkey. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the com- 
mittee, with regard to the Irish in the Revolutionary Army, a large 
proportion of them were undoubtedly Protestant, -and I never heard 
an Irishman claim or suggest the contrary. Protestants — especially 
Presbyterians — as well as Catholics, came to America to escape Eng- 
lish misrule in Ireland. They were the compatriots of the Protest- 
ants who assembled in the Dungannon Convention, of those who 
filled the ranks of Grattan's Irish Volunteers in 1782 and of Tone's 
" United Irishmen " in 1798. 

Thomas Davis, the Irish Protestant poet and patriot, wrote : 

Then start not Irish-born man, 

If you're to Ireland true, 

We heed not race, nor creed, nor clan, 

We're hearts and hands for you. 

It is in this spirit we think of the Irish in the Revolutionary Army — 
they were true to Ireland's ideals and true to America. 

At the same time we must note that the Muster Roll of the Revolu- 
tionary Army shows a very large percentage of men with Irish 
Catholic names, many of whom had lost the faith owing to the fact 
that in most parts of the country they had no Catholic clergymen to 
minister to them and keep it alive, and then there were the religious 
disabilities existing outside of Maryland and Pennsylvania.. 

Gentlemen, it is impossible to deal with the contribution of the 
Irish race to American greatness in the short time at my disposal, 
and I commend to your attention on this question the work written 
by Michael J. O'Brien, historiographer of the American-Irish His- 
torical Society, entitled "A Hidden Phase of American History," 
just published by the Devin Adair Co., of New York. 

STATEMENT OF GEORGE HOLDEN TINKHAM, A REPRESENTA- 
TIVE IN CONGRESS FROM MASSACHUSETTS. 

Mr. Tinkham. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, I 
am in favor of this committee reporting to the House of Representa- 
tives one of the resolutions which it has before it. The one I prefer 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 131 

is the one introduced by the honorable Representative from Illinois, 
Mr. Gallagher, because of its simplicity and directness. 

In $775 America began the contest to establish for all time the 
only fundamental truth upon which government can rest and by 
which a state can endure, that the consent of the governed is neces- 
sary for all law and order. That principle was established by the 
American Revolution and is the first and most fundamental of Amer- 
ican ideals. 

America engaged in the great world war for that principle, so it 
was declared by our President, and so it was fought by America. 

Justice for all peoples and all countries, particularly the small 
countries, was his assertion. No peace but one of justice, he said, 
could be a lasting peace. Our President, who is our representative 
in France at this moment, has said that self-determin?tion should 
be the rule to govern the establishment of states and nations under 
any peace to which America should assent. Therefore, it is fit and 
proper that the Congress should pass a resolution expressing its 
opinion that Ireland 'should be treated with equal justice and upon 
the same principles as other nationalities in the coining peace treaties. 
Ireland repeatedly has asserted her nationality and has demanded 
self-determination. When the world is to be governed by free peoples 
the claim of Ireland can not be ignored. 

Let us again at this important moment when the political world is 
being made anew reassert our belief in the fundamental American 
principle of Government, that the consent of the governed alone is 
the test for government and for justice, and that no country, race, or 
nationality, including Ireland, be excluded from its application. 

The following matter was submitted for insertion in the record : 

House of Representatives, 

Washington, December 19, 1918. 
Hon. Henry D. Flood, 

Chairman Foreign Affairs Committee, 

House of Representatives. 
My Dear Colleague: Owing to my absence from Washington I was unable 
to appear at the hearings on House joint resolution 357 introduced by Mr. 
Gallagher, requesting the Representatives of the United States to the interna- 
tional peace conference to present to the said conference the right of Ireland 
to self-determination, predicated on the principle laid down by the President 
in his several addresses to the Congress of the United States. 

I sent you a telegram from New York which I would like to have inserted 
in the hearings as well as a statement that I inclose. 
Sincerely, yours, 

John I. Nolan, 
Fifth District of California. 



House of Representatives, 

Washington, December 19, 1918. 
Hon. Henry D. Flood, 

Chairman Foreign Affairs Committee, 

House of Representatives. 
My Dear Colleague : I was unavoidably absent from the city last week when 
the Committee on Foreign Affairs considered House joint resolution 357, intro- 
duced by Mr. Gallagher of Illinois, requesting the commissioners of the United 
States of America to the international peace conference to present to the said 
conference the right of Ireland to freedom, independence, and self-determination. 
During my recent visit to San Francisco I found a very strong sentiment 
existing among all classes of people in the city that President Wilson's declara- 
tion regarding self-determination by the smaller nations of the world as to the 



132 THE IRISH QUESTION". 

form of government under which they should live should apply to the Irish 
nation. I strongly favor this position and believe the Congress of the United 
States should pass the Gallagher resolution at the earliest opportunity, so that 
our conferees might know the position of the American people through their 
chosen representatives in Congress. 

I have been asked to represent a number of organizations in San Francisco 
favoring the Gallagher resolution, among these being the San Francisco Labor 
Council, the United Irish Societies of San Francisco, a number of organization 
divisions of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, Golden Gate Aerie, No. 61, Fra- 
ternal Order of Eagles, executive board of the United Brewery Workmen of 
California, the San Francisco Council, Young Men's Institute, the Brotherhood 
of Teamsters, the California State Federation of Labor, and a number of other 
societies, representing in the aggregate several hundred thousand people, all 
united in one thought, that justice can not prevail unless President Wilson's 
ideas of self-determination of the form of government under which the smaller 
nations shall live be applied to the case of Ireland. 

In this connection I would like to have incorporated an editorial from the 
New York American under date of Wednesday, December 11. 

I trust that the committee will see its way clear to report the resolution 
immediately with a favorable recommendation, so that it may pass the House 
and Senate in time to be transmitted to our representatives. 
Sincerely, yours, 

John I. Nolan, 
Fifth District of California. 



IRELAND SHOULD HAVE RIGHT TO GOVERN ITSELF. 

The British Labor Party will not carry this coming election. Neither does 
the British Labor Party expect to carry ttns coming election. 

But every intelligent man in Great Britain, no matter what his sympathies 
may be. knows very well that the British Labor Party will sooner or later have 
a majority in Parliament. 

One of the demands of the British Labor Party is that the people of Ireland 
shall have the right of self-determination. 

That is to say, if the Irish people so decide by a referendum, Ireland can 
remain a constituent part of the British Empire or it can be independent. 

As a matter of fact, men not of Irish blood, and therefore not subject to 
prejudice, but who do sympathize with the Irish in their desire to govern them- 
selves, mostly believe that the ideal solution of the whole Irish question lies 
in the federation of the British Empire exactly as our own 48 States are fed- 
erated, each State retaining its right of local self-government and all being 
bound together in a willing and mutual patriotic devotion to the Federal Gov- 
ernment which speaks for them in international matters. 

In other words, many students and thinkers who have at heart the welfare of 
the Irish people believe that the best interests of Ireland would be served by an 
agreement which would guarantee the conduct of Irish affairs by the Irish 
people and which would also unite them with the peoples of England, Scotland. 
Wales, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa in a federated 
nation constructed upon the same lines upon which the Republic of the United 
States is constructed. 

Under such conditions the people of Ulster would have their minority rights 
in the federal parliament, and the people of the rest of Ireland would have 
their majority rights in the federal parliament, and both would have their 
rights in the local Irish parliament. 

We are well aware that such a proposal will not appeal either to the ex- 
tremists among the Catholic Irishmen or the extremists among the Protestant 
Irishmen. 

But we are quite sure that the one lesson which history repeats over and 
over again is that all relations, both of individuals and of peoples, are in the 
long run a matter of compromise, and that these compromises are invariably 
found to be in the long run better settlements than the settlements by either 
class of extremists. 

We think that Ireland should be entirely free to govern itself. 

We believe that in all Irish affairs and in all matters pertaining to Ireland 
the Irish people should be the sole judges of what ought to be done. 



/ 

THE IRISH QUESTION. 133 

We think that neither Englishmen nor Scotchmen nor Welshmen should have 
anything more to say about the conduct of purely Irish affairs than they should 
have to say about the conduct of affairs in New York or in California. 

Which is to say that we believe in the right of the Irish people to govern 
themselves by their own consent. 

Yet, on the other hand, we do believe that careful thinking will show to every 
reasonable person that a small people like the Irish, dwelling on an island 
which could be easily blockaded by a hostile fleet and which is open to attack 
either from the neighboring island of Great Britain or from the neighboring 
Continent of Europe, would be defenseless against one of the greater powers 
and should, as a matter of wise precaution, link itself with a maritime empire 
that has just so signally displayed its ability to resist and to destroy the great- 
est military power which Europe has seen since the star of Napoleon set in 
the night of Waterloo. 

President Wilson's proclaimed ideals of international democracy seem to 
justify the hope that he inclines in his program to the rightful freedom of the 
Irish people. 

And now that the President is backed up by the liberal and farsighted sup- 
port of the British Labor Party, he may be able to achieve the freedom of Ire- 
land if he makes that one of his specific demands. 

We trust that the President will do that very thing. 

We trust that when he appears at the peace conference to maintain the doc- 
trine of self-determination and the right of every people, great or small, to 
govern itself that Ireland will be included among the small nations whose 
democratic safety the President has pledged himself to safeguard. 

STATEMENT OF MR. HUGH MONTAGUE, OF PASSAIC, N. J. 

Mr. Montague. I represent the Employers' Federation of North- 
ern New Jersey, and, as the father of two boys in our Army, add my 
word to that of my fellow citizens here in urging you to see to it 
that Ireland shall be granted international justice and allowed to 
choose her own form of government in her own way. 

STATEMENT OF MR. T. J. DOYLE, OF ST. PAUL, MINN. 

Mr. Doyle. Since coming here, I have been obliged to change the 
remarks that I intended to make to this committee, and it was due 
solely to that infamous slander cast upon our people this morning. 
I am president of the Ancient Order of Hibernians Life Insurance 
Society in Minnesota. Immediately after war was declared, I called 
the directors of that association together for the purpose of increas- 
ing the rate during war time, so that no member who had insurance 
in that institution and went to war should have cause to feel that 
they were going to lose the insurance, because that was one of the 
conditions in our constitution. 

We changed that condition so that every man who would go to the 
war could maintain his policy. We appeal to you to-day to stand by 
the resolution that is before you, and I will go back home to the 
North Star State and be satisfied the Congressmen here in Washing- 
ton are true to the Declaration of Independence. 

STATEMENT OF MR. P. J. REYNOLDS, STATE PRESIDENT OF THE 
ANCIENT ORDER OF HIBERNIANS, OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS. 

Mr. Reynolds. I did not intend to address your honorable body 
when I came down here. I don't practice talking very much. I re- 
serve that more for home consumption. I am a worker more than 
a talker. I have been a member of the Ancient Order of Hibernians 



134 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

46 consecutive years. During that time I have held a considerable 
number of offices in building up the organization in England and 
the United States, and I must say that in all of my years of experi- 
ence I never knew the Ancient Order of Hibernians in Illinois or in 
any other State of the Union, or elsewhere, to be anything else but 
American aud Irish, and since the declaration of war I know posi- 
tively that there has not been a resolution passed at any of its princi- 
pal gatherings that would tend to lead anybody to believe that they 
were pro-German. 

I deny in toto the aspersions made by the gentleman from Con- 
necticut on the loyalty of the Ancient Order, and may state that my 
entire family are fighting for the Stars and Stripes, my only boys, 
and I only wish that I had more of them to send to defend the flag 
that stood and stands for the freedom of all nations. 

STATEMENT OF MR. BERNARD LYONS, REPRESENTING THE 
BUILDING TRADES OF NEW YORK. 

Mr. Lyons. I represent the building trades of New York, a portion 
of that section of labor we heard from yesterday through Mr. Rock. 
I wish to say this, that the labor world believes that nations should 
no longer settle disputes by the old method of brute force ; that rea- 
son is the best way to settle all affairs. The best proof of that is the 
record of the English labor party. They have gone on record as 
favoring self-determination for the Irish people. 

STATEMENT OF HON. P. J. O'DONOHTJE, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. 

Mr. O'Donohue. I come before you this morning, from Minne- 
apolis, to convey the opinion expressed in two mass meetings held in 
Minnesota recently. One of them a week ago last Friday night, and 
the other one last Monday night in Minneapolis. As I said before, 
they were representative meetings, not of any particular society, but 
mass meetings of citizens, where all classes and all grades appeared 
together and spoke on the platform in favor of independence for 
Ireland to decide for herself her own form of government. I am 
glad to have the opportunity to present to you the same view this 
morning, and to say that we are in hearty accord with all that has 
been said in favor of the resolution here. We are all entirely for 
freedom in all the West. We don't think it is right to leave out any 
particular people. . We believe that the spirit of Jefferson and the 
spirit of the other American patriots is large enough to include all 
the people in the world. 

STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN J. CURLEY, OF BOSTON, MASS. 

Mr. Curley. We held an Irish meeting at Symphony Hall, Bos- 
ton, last Monday night, attended by 15,000 people. The following 
resolution, which was sent to -the President, was unanimously passed: 

Whereas the United States Government has been an important factor in the 
successful issue of this world-wide war; and 

Whereas our President, the Hon. Woodrow Wilson, as commander in chief of 
the United States forces, has declared that our dominating object in entering 
the war lias been the principle of self-determination for all nations, whether 
great or small ; and 



THE IRISH QUESTION-. 135 

Whereas the Irish nation antedates any of the present European nations, 
and has the closest affiliations with the United States ; 

Therefore, we, the undersigned, as American citizens, in accordance with our 
constitutional rights, respectfully petition the President to use the unselfish 
position of the United States to the end that the claims of Ireland to be a free 
and independent nation in the fellowship of nations shall be acknowledged by 
the United States; and the place of Ireland in whatsoever congress may be 
gathered, after the war, to agree on the future of the peoples, may be assured 
by the influence of the United States in such measure that Ireland may stand 
on equal condition with Poland, with Serbia, with Belgium, and with all the 
wronged nations of the world. 

I would say in regard to this petition that it was signed by his 
eminence, William Cardinal O'Connell, archbishop of Boston, and by 
300 of the priests of Boston. 

One of the big issues before the world to-day is the independence 
of Ireland. 

There is no thought of Government other than that determined by 
the Irish people themselves by majority of their own electorate, 
which will give Ireland representation as a nation. 

If world-wide peace is to be assured under a league of nations, 
which now appears to be the underlying mission of our great Presi- 
dent overseas, then there must be no government under force, such as 
rules in Ireland to-day under the present sovereignty of Great 
Britain. 

The Irish people are to-day united for stable government under 
their own franchise, for self-determination before the world, and 
will gladly accept the same assurance of nationality that will be given 
Serbia, the Czecho-Slovaks, and other smaller nations. 

The league of nations must protect and sustain all nationalities 
of the world. The intent and purpose of such a league of nations is 
the placing of an end for all times of the sovereignty of an empire 
over other peoples by forms of government against which sovereignty 
the people of a nation protest, as is evidenced in Ireland to-day. 

The purpose of the peace conference at Versailles is to perpetuate 
free and untrammeled government for all people and for all times, 
and the pleas of the people of Ireland, voiced for over 700 years, 
must be heard at this time as among the first consideration of world- 
wide peace, self-determination for the people of Ireland, and op- 
portunity to govern themselves. 

It is idle to assume that there can be a league of nations that will 
protect the smaller nations unless forms of government are assured, 
such as a majority of the voters of the smaller nations desire, and of 
the 4,300,000 population of Ireland, to-day fully 85 per cent are de- 
termined for the policy of self-determination. 

The security, the well being of nations to-day, and for the future 
can not be determined by the force of arms — it must rest upon the 
free and untrammeled franchise for all men qualified as voters. 

President Wilson upon September 27, 1918, declared : 

Shall the military power of any nation or group of nations be suffered to 
determine the fortunes of people over whom they have no right to rule except 
the right of force? 

The appeal of the people of Ireland to-day is against the further 
domination of Great Britain by " the right of force." If the freedom 
of the people of the United States to govern themselves in 1776 was 
their inherent right, the people of Ireland should enjoy the same 
inherent right to-day. 



136 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

The government — the voice of the people to govern themselves, 
must be the watchword for the smaller nations of the future, and 
free government for Ireland is to-day the demand of its people. 

The power of sovereignty by might has been overthrown in Ger- 
many at frightful cost, it must be relinquished by Great Britain as a 
matter of international necessity. 

There can be no league of nations unless the greater nations at the 
peace table offer some voluntary sacrifices and relinquishments of 
power, and the right of Ireland to govern herself should be the first 
relinquishment of Great Britain. 

Mr. Gallagher. Mr. Chairman, I have here a petition handed me 
by Alderman Thomas J. Ahem, of Chicago, who is present at the 
hearing and desires me to have it made a part of the record. The 
petition is as follows : 

A PETITION FOR SELF-DETERMINATION FOR IRELAND. 

We, the members of the United Irish Societies of Chicago, beg that in con- 
sideration of what Ireland has done for our country from the time of the Declara- 
tion of Independence, throughout the struggling period of our national life, and 
of what born Irishmen naturalized in our country, and their descendants, have 
done, are doing, and will continue to do for its defense and upbuilding, your 
committee and the Congress of the United States take steps to see that Ireland 
be given back her sovereignty and the right to determine for herself what form 
of government she wishee. 



Also the following resolutions: 



Thomas J. Ahern, President. 
John D. Roche, Treasurer. 



Hon. Thomas Gallagher, M. C, 

Washington, D. C. 

Dear Sir: At the regular quarterly meeting of the St. Patrick's Commercial 
Academy Alumni, held on December 9, the following resolutions were proposed 
by the Hon. Robert M. Sweitzer, seconded by Judge Hugh A. Kerns, and passed 
unanimously : 

Whereas, Ireland is now being held down by military force ; and 
Whereas, the allies, as well as the United States, have declared that they stand 

for self-determination for all small nations ; 

Resolved, That the St. Patrick's Commercial Academy Alumni declare that the 
Irish nation should be permitted to choose, by popular vote, the government for 
which it has so long struggled ; and that President Wilson and the other Ameri- 
can delegates to the peace conference should stand firm for self-determination for 
Ireland. 

Resolved, further, That as a great effort is now being made all over the 
United States by many hundreds of thousands of freedom-loving Americans, to 
bring about self-determination for Ireland, they pledge themselves to neglect 
no opportunity, while the peace conference is in session, to aid in every way they 
can to bring to this worthy agitation the success it deserves. 

It is the desire of the alumni named above that these resolutions be delivered 
to Hon. Joseph P. Tumulty for transmission to the President of the United 
States. Will you, if you please, perform this office for them? 
Yours, very truly, 

Peter J. McKenna, Secretary. 

The following resolutions were unanimously adopted at a regular 
meeting of Waldron-Murphy Camp No. 29, Department of Illinois, 
United Spanish War Veterans, held Wednesday, December 11, 1918, 
with instructions that they be presented to the self-determination 
mass meeting, at First Regiment Armory, Sunday, December 15 : 

Whereas the United States of America entered the European war for no 
other purpose than to make possible and permanent the right of each people to 
govern themselves, without interference from others; and 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 137 

Whereas the President of the United States has declared that the world 
must be made safe for democracy ; and 

Whereas in support of the policy of our President it is the duty of all liberty- 
loving citizens of this free Nation to aid him to their fullest extent in securing 
for the smaller nations of the world the right of freedom and independence: 
Therefore be it 

Resolved, That Waldron-Murphy Camp, No. 29, of Spanish War Veterans, 
composed of men of all creeds, who volunteered their lives to secure liberty 
and self-determination for the oppressed people of Cuba, do earnestly urge 
the people of this Nation to instruct their representatives to the peace con- 
ference to make every effort to secure for the Irish people the same right 
of self-determination of government for which American soldiers have fought 
and died : And be it further 

Resolved, That we, as a patriotic organization, do heartily approve of the 
object of this mass meeting, to the end that the sacrifices made by the people of 
this Nation in the recent conflict shall not have been made in vain. 

P. J. Skebkett, 

Chairman, 

D. S. Mussek, 

E. V. Clement, 
T. R. Quinlan, 
John M. McGuire, 

Committee on Resolutions. 

Mr. Lynch. Mr. Chairman, I have here a letter from Hon. Ed- 
ward J. Ga vegan, justice of the supreme court, New York, addressed 
to you, that I desire to have placed in the record. 

December 13, 1918. 
Hon. Henby D. Flood, 

Chairman Committee on Foreign Relations, 

House of Representatives, Washington, D. C. 

Deab Slb: Mr. Lloyd George recognizes the necessity of settling the Irish 
question to conciliate America. President Wilson during the war urged settle- 
ment thereof to improve American morale. The President's self-determination 
formula is absolute and all inclusive. Self-determination for Ireland will be 
a fortunate thing not only for that country but also for the national spirit 
of our own country as a whole, for then it can be no longer said of yourself, 
whose family has been here for so many generations, and myself, whose family is 
now here in the fifth generation, and of upward of 20,000,000 of other Ameri- 
cans of the same stock, that they are the offspring of a subject race. I do 
not mean to be offensive, but that wrankling thought is always with me. and 
it has seemed to me even during the intense anxieties of the war that favor- 
able action by Congress on the resolution now before you not only could have 
been taken with the utmost propriety, but that it would have saved much 
bitterness of spirit between great groups of our population where otherwise 
harmony and mutual respect obtained. Now, that all pretext of common 
danger is passed, it does not seem possible to me that the objection as to pro- 
priety can in good faith and in good conscience be raised. Finally, some of us 
know and all of us believe that the President, whatever his former attitude 
was by reason of exigencies now gone by, would welcome at this time the 
encouraging support of the legislative branch of our Government in promulgat- 
ing his great principle of self-determination. 

I respectfully urge favorable action by your committee on the bill which is 
before you on the question of self-determination for Ireland. 
Very truly, yours, 

Edwabd J. Gavegan. 

Mr. Lynch. Mr. Chairman, I also have a telegram from Hon. John 
P. Grace, ex-mayor of Charleston, S. C, that I wish inserted. It reads 
as follows : 

I am satisfied that if, by a plebiscite, the question of Irish freedom could be 
left to a vote in South Carolina, the answer in its favor would be overwhelming. 
Not for home rule or for autonomy or for any of the makeshifts proposed from 
time to time, but for absolute independence. 

John P. Gbace. 



138 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

STATEMENT OF MR. JOHN O'DEA, OF PHILADELPHIA, PA., NA- 
TIONAL CHAIRMAN OF THE HISTORY COMMITTEE, ANCIENT 
ORDER OF HIBERNIANS. 

Mr. O'Dea. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, this I regard as a most 
momentous occasion. The peace conference will undoubtedly be the 
most influential deliberative body of all time. It will give to the 
world a new Declaration of Independence. That of 1776 in Phila- 
delphia affected only the American Nation, while that of 1919 in 
Versailles will, on the authority of our great President, affect all the 
nations of the earth. 

In requesting your honorable body to declare in favor of Ireland's 
demand for freedom I take the liberty of pointing to the fact that her 
efforts to reestablish her sovereignty have not been surpassed by any 
nation in Europe. 

The claim of Ireland to self-determination is not of yesterday. Be- 
fore the Saxons landed in England the Irish had a parliament, laws, 
and political institutions. 

The luminous genius of the Irish race emitted light amid the gloom 
of ignorance that once enshrouded the whole continent of Europe; 
students from a dozen nations lit their lamps at the fires of Irish 
learning; the wisdom of the Irish sages penetrated the camps of bar- 
baric chieftains, and kings and peasants listened, inspired by the 
beauty and sublimity of Irish conceptions. 

The Catholic Confederation of 1642 enacted at the Parliament of 
Kilkenny the first laws guaranteeing religious Uberty, and that arrest 
and imprisonment without warrant of law was contrary to Irish cus- 
tom — a custom written in Irish statutes centuries before Magna 
Charta. It is worthy of notice, especially since up to the present the 
people of Ireland have been denied the right of self-determination, 
that the first and most authoritative utterance on the equality of man 
was published by William Molyneux in Dublin in 16*96, many years 
before Eousseau and Thomas Jefferson were born. That great Irish- 
man is truly the father of modern democracy, so far as it pertains to 
that intellectual freedom which aims to throw off political, social, 
and military thralldom. 

This battle for the right of self-determination in Ireland is not 
being waged on religious grounds. Catholic England having been 
no less harsh in its treatment of the weaker nation than Protestant 
England ; for, from the massacre at Waterford at the time of the in- 
vasion of Strongbow, down to this very hour, England has made a 
record in Ireland that indeed is unparalleled in its cruelty. 

Ireland had control of her own affairs for 18 years-rl782 to 18U0. 
These were years of unexampled prosperity, though representation 
in Parliament was drawn from only 20 per cent of the population. 
After this Parliament had been " packed " with English " placemen " 
it was bribed to betray Ireland and effect a union with England, the 
price paid each traitor for his perfidy approximating $40,000. 

HOW THE UNION WAS CARRIED. 

Do not unite with us, sir ; it would be the union of the shark with his prey ; 
we should unite with you only to destroy you. (Dr. Samuel Johnson.) 

If it must be called a union, it is the union of a shark with his prey ; the 
spoiler swallows up his victim and they become one and inseparable. Thus his 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 139 

Great Britain swallowed up the parliament, the constitution, the independence of 
Ireland. (Lord Byron.) 

Such an act (union) in the parliament, without the authority of the people, 
is a breach of trust. Parliament is not the proprietor but the trustee, and the 
people the proprietor, not the property. Parliament is called to make laws, 
not to elect lawmakers ; assembled to exercise the functions of parliament, not 
to substitute another parliament for the discharge of its own duty. (Grattan.) 

The collective body of the people delegate, but do not give up trust, but Go 
not alienate their right and power. There is something which a parliament can 
not do — a parliament can not annul the constitution. The legislature is a 
supreme but not an arbitrary power. (Bolingbroke.) 

It (union) would be the emigration of every man of consequence in Ireland. 
It would be the participation of British taxes without British trade. (Curran.) 

The calamitous result of the union to Ireland is shown in the 
following figures: 

Population in 1S01 : 

England 8, 892, 536 

Ireland 5, 395, 456 

Scotland 1, 608, 420 

Present population : 

England 36, 070, 492 

Ireland 4, 381, 951 

Scotland 4, 759, 445 

The figures, indeed, tell their own sad story. They cry loudly for 
the termination of a union — that of the wolf and the lamb. 

With regard to Ireland's revenue, I quote from Nationality of 
July 28, 1917: 

Ireland's revenue for the current year will be £30,000,000. That sum is equal 
to the normal revenue of Belgium, which has a population nearly double ours 
to tax and provide for. It is £6,000,000 greater than the revenue of Roumania, 
£S,000,000 greater than the revenue of Sweden, £11,000,000 greater than the 
revenue of Holland. It is equal to the combined revenues of Denmark, Switzer- 
land, Norway and Greece. It is thrice the revenue of Bulgaria and nine times 
the revenue of Switzerland. 

Ireland raises the largest revenue of the small nations of Europe — and what 
does she get for it? 

******* 

Holland. Sweden and other countries obtain and maintain an army and fleet, 
a diplomatic and consular service and administration of Dutch and Swedish 
affairs by Dutchmen and Swedes. Ireland gets none of these things. The 
thirty million goes to defray the expenses of the subjection of Ireland to Eng- 
lish interests, and to put a handsome profit in England's pocket. 

Ireland is three times as large as Belgium, two and one-half times 
the size of Holland, and more richly fertile than either. 

It is urged by the spokesmen of bigotry that there are two Irelands. 
This can be said of practically all nations to-day. Self-determina- 
tion, however, is not denied them because they do not all worship 
God at the same altar. We ask only that Ireland be similarly treated, 
there being no honorable reason for treating her differently, no reason 
why Ireland's dissenting minority should be permitted forever to bar 
the way to peace and nationhood. 

STATEMENT OF PROF. P. J. LENNOX, LITT. D., OF THE CATHOLIC 
UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA, WASHINGTON, D. C. 

Dr. Lennox. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen I have prepared a 
statement in favor of the resolution along economic lines because I 
thought that possibly that particular line of argument had not been 
developed, and I am entirely in favor o£ the passage of the resolution 



140 THE IRISH QUESTION - . 

before your honorable body. I know that your action in this matter 
will give satisfaction to millions of people in this country. 

As a result of the war — which is now, I hope, happily over — some 
of the smaller peoples and nations of Europe have been given, or are 
to be given, the right of self-determination, because they were kept, 
against their will, under the domination of other nations, and be- 
cause, while so subjected, they were badly governed. On both 
grounds, Ireland has a similar rightful claim to self-determination. 
Her struggle for freedom from foreign rule for 750 years is unpar- 
alleled in the history of the world. That she was badly governed 
during all that time and that she is badly governed to-day are self- 
evident propositions, needing no proof. There is a consensus of the 
overwhelming majority of mankind on that subject. As a distin- 
guished Englishman, the late W. E. Gladstone, put it, English gov- 
ernment in Ireland has "been marked by every horror and every 
shame that could mark the relations between a strong country and a 
weak one." 

Four great lines of cleavage have always existed between England 
and Ireland — race, language, religion, and economics ; and the great- 
est of these is economics. I wish, during the few minutes allotted to 
me, to draw the attention of your honorable body to a few of the 
many economic questions on which grievous wrong has been done to 
Ireland by the predominant partner in the forced alliance existing 
between them. 

The first principle of good government, namely, the happiness and 
welfare of the people governed, has always been set at naught in 
Ireland's case. It would, for example, be immediately for the good 
of Ireland, and ultimately for the good of England, to promote Irish 
trade and commerce and to develop Irish industrial resources. But 
what do we find? So far from doing this, the English Government 
has not only not encouraged but has from time to time even taken 
steps expressly to destroy Irish business. Thus in 1665 the English 
Parliament enacted a law prohibiting the exportation of Irish cattle 
to England. Again, in 1698, at the bidding of English rivals, the 
Irish woolen trade, at that time one of the greatest in Europe, was de- 
liberately killed by an enactment forbidding the export of wool from 
Ireland to any country but England, and, at that, to only one port in 
England. At a later period the silk-weaving industry of Dublin and 
the glass industry of Waterford were also killed off. During the war 
between England and her revolted American colonies, Ireland was 
reduced to the verge of national bankruptcy by an English embargo 
on her exports. 

Ireland is largely an agricultural country — 44 per cent, as compared 
with 8 per cent for England and 10 per cent for Scotland. Yet the 
same free trade, following on the repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846, 
which was certainly good for industrial England, was pretended to 
be equally good for agricultural Ireland. The result was that in 
Ireland it was not found possible to compete with the foreigner in 
such a staple product as flour, and wheat virtually ceased to be grown 
in Ireland, and the ruins of hundreds of flour mills throughout the 
country stand to-day as mute but expressive witnesses of a great na- 
tional wrong. 

Ireland contains 20,350,725 statute acres. Of these a total of 
12,433,095 were a few years- ago under pasture, the lowest and least 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 141 

profitable form of agriculture. Now, it surely should be the end 
and aim of government to put an end to so unpromising a condition 
of affairs. The question of the drainage of flooded areas has been 
before Parliament since I was a child, and every year something was 
promised but nothing was done. 

The peat alone in the bogs is fraught with great industrial possibili- 
ties, but it remains an unworked source of national wealth, except for 
firing, for lack of Government encouragement. 

Similarly the coal, iron, and other mineral wealth of Ireland is 
known to scientists to be great, but these are not developed as they 
would be in a self-governing country. The result is that nearly all the 
coal burned in Ireland comes from northern England or southern 
Wales, and so' with the iron. The inference is obvious. 

The ports and harbors of Ireland, which are among the finest and 
most commodious in the world, are standing practically empty. Her 
great rivers, like the lordly Shannon and the noble Barrow, are run- 
ning idly to the sea. Her fisheries are scarcely at all worked. All 
these things are the result of willful neglect, which would not be pos- 
sible in any country that ruled itself. 

Ireland is governed from Dublin Castle by 67 different boards, 
which are independent of one another, and which, between them, 
employ a formidably numerous array of officials, on whom one- 
tenth of the Irish receipts are spent, while in England only one- 
fortieth of the budget is spent in administration. 

Again, in Ireland, which has the lowest criminal record in the 
world, the cost of police is 6s. 8d. per head of the population, while 
in England the cost is 3s. 4Jd. per inhabitant, and in Scotland 2s. 

Indirect taxation, which presses heaviest on the poorer classes, 
represents 70 per cent of the Irish taxes, while in England it reaches 
only 50 per cent. 

Now, let me tell of perhaps the most glaring of all the injustices 
done to Ireland. The Act of Union of 1800 was supposed to be a 
solemn treaty between two sovereign States, the Kingdom of Ireland 
on the one hand, and the Kingdom of Great Britain on the other. 
It was passed by bribery, corruption, and fraud. It was an unfair 
treaty to Ireland. It contained, however, one saving clause — the two 
exchequers were to be separate. But in 1817 an act of Parliament 
unwarrantably amalgamated the exchequers, and from that day to 
this Ireland has had no separate accounting of the collection and 
expenditure of the taxes levied upon her, and no proper statement 
of the incidence of the taxation. It was long felt that under this ar- 
rangement she was getting a great deal the worse of the bargain. 
Finally, feeling on this point ran so high that in 1894 a royal com- 
mission was appointed to investigate the financial relations between 
the two countries. This commission consisted of 12 Englishmen 
and 2 Irishmen. After a painstaking inquiry extending over three 
years the commission issued its report in 1896. That report showed 
that Ireland had been overtaxed at the rate of £3,000,000 a year! 
Was anything then done to remedy the monstrous grievance shown 
in this unfair incidence of taxation? Not a thing. On the con- 
trary, it has gone on increasing in unfairness. Since the war began 
the comparative burden has been still greater on Ireland. 



142 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

•The question has been asked whether, if Ireland got self-determina- 
tion, and decided to be an independent nation outside the British 
Empire, she would be able to be self-supporting? Everyone knows 
that she would ; but as a good start would be a desirable thing, and 
as indemnities are, very properly, the order of the day, there is an 
indemnity of £3,000,000 a year for 100 years, or £300,000,000, or 
$1,500,000,000, exclusive of interest, which would assuredly put Ire- 
land on the right road to the greatness which is undoubtedly her due. 

As further proof of my case as to English misgovernment of Ire- 
land, and therefore of Ireland's right to self-determination, I hand 
in, for inclusion in the record, a letter from Right Rev. Dr. Hallinan, 
bishop of Limerick, written on October 21, 1918, to the Ard Feis in 
Dublin, and a letter written at the same time to the same body 
by Right Rev. Dr. Fogarty, bishop of Killaloe, each of which covers 
points which the limitation of time imposed upon me did not permit 
me to touch. 

Most Rev. Dr. Hallinan, in his letter dated October 21, said: 

As I can not be present at the meeting of the Ard-Feis of Sinn Fein I see no 
objection to my giving an expression of my views on the present political out- 
look. The present is, in my opinion, the most momentous period in the whole 
history of Ireland. The war is nearing its end, and soon there will be delegates 
from all nations sitting in conference to recast the map of the greater part of 
the inhabited world and to decide in particular the fate of small nationalities. 
It is a matter of great importance to this country to have its voice heard before 
that assemblage. 

Ireland is a nation older than England, or perhaps than any other race or 
nation that will be represented at it. Nature has designed and fitted her to be 
such, and she has never renounced her title or claim to it. During the vicissi- 
tudes and fiery ordeals of the last seven centuries she has preserved intact and 
indestructible that principle of her national individuality notwithstanding the 
persistent efforts of England to strangle it. 

In 17S2 "a solemn compact," as it was called by the then Viceroy, Lord 
Portland, was made between " the English and Irish nations." A statute was 
passed in the British Parliament called the Renunciation Act, by which England 
renounced all claim to legislate for Ireland, and this enactment was declared 
" to be established and ascertained forever and shall at no time hereafter be 
questioned or questionable." 

ENGLAND'S RECORD OF INFAMY. 

After 18 years, during which Ireland advanced in a marvelous manner under 
her own Parliament, imperfect as it was in many respects, in commerce, cul- 
tivation, agriculture, and manufactures, that solemn treaty between two inde- 
pendent nations was shamefully broken, or, in modern parlance, treated as 
" a scrap of paper," by the British Government under Pitt. 

In 1800 he destroyed our Parliament and carried the act of union by 
" force, fraud, and corruption," to use the words of Mr. Gladstone. Since the 
passing of that act of infamy the history of no civilized nation furnishes any- 
thing to equal the misgovernment of this country by the British Parliament. 
" It has been marked," to quote Mr. Gladstone, " by every horror and every 
shame that could mark the relations between a strong country and a weak one." 

By its fruits you shall know it. Three abortive attempts at armed rebellion, 
100 coercion acts — one of them " perpetual," and that in the Jubilee year of 
Queen Victoria ; absorption by unjust taxation of some hundreds of millions 
of our national revenue, and that in flagrant violation of one of the clauses of 
the act of union ; the dwindling of our population from upward of 8,000.000 to 
little more than half; the flight of the bone and sinew of our race from their 
motherland to foreign shores, leaving behind them the aged and the children, 
for whose maintenance millions have been sent back by the exiles; two arti- 
ficially created famines; the paralysis of our commerce; the ruin of our in- 
dustries; the poverty and degradation of our people. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 143 

During all this time some remedial concessions have been wrung from a 
hostile Parliament ; but, however, either at the point of the bayonet, under the 
stress of social revolution, or when it suited the party purposes of British 
politicians. Nothing was given from a sense of right or justice — as little as 
possible was given— and that little with the worst grace, so that the British 
Government never deserved and never got a word of thanks from this nation. 
For those who, like myself, have Deen during a half-century witnesses of the 
party intrigues, the exasperating delays, the broken promises, the contemptuous 
treatment of this ancient, downtrodden nation by an unsympathetic, arrogant, 
foreign Parliament, the process of amelioration has been sickening. 

Now the weapon of Parliamentarianism. feeble and disappointing as it often 
proved to be, has been wrested from our hands. Carsonism, which means rebel- 
lion against the fundamental principle of the British constitution with its 
threat " to break every law," the stirring up of mutiny in the army, and its 
condonation, approval, and reward by the Government, has laid the axe at the 
root of Parliamentarianism, so far as this country at least is concerned. 

SINN FEIN MEANS SELF-DETERMINATION. 

But we have at hand a weapon more powerful than armed rebellion or par- 
liamentarianism, and that is the policy of Sinn Fein. For what else is the 
policy of " self-determination " — now accepted by all nations — but the English 
translation of the basic principle of Sinn Fein? 

Generations of Irishmen in the past have been appealing at one time to the 
fears, at another to the sense of justice of Englishmen in the British Parlia- 
ment for the freedom of their native land. They have appealed in vain. Now 
is the golden opportunity to change the venue and to make our appeal to the 
international tribunal at the forthcoming Peace Conference. England's voice 
may be loud and strong there, but it will not be loud or strong enough to silence 
before an impartial tribunal the voice of those who will bespeak the undeniable 
rights and imperishable claims of this ancient race to complete national inde- 
pendence. There is only one barrier to the success of this policy, and that is 
the continued presence of Irish national representation in the English Parlia- 
ment. They can do no good there. 

This is no time for them to be toying and trifling with the supreme interests 
of the Nation in that assemly whilst they are at the same time proclaiming for 
Ireland the right of self-determination. If they be sincere in this profession, 
then it seems to me that it is their duty to shake the dust of the House of Com- 
mons off their feet, bid good-by to it forever, return to their own country, there 
take counsel with the leaders of Sinn Fein, enter into some arrangement with 
them to avoid contested elections, and thus united jointly to prepare and formu- 
late the national demand for self-determination before the Peace Conference. 

The Most Rev. Dr. Fogarty, in the course of his letter, wrote : 

The Ard-Fheis meets this year in a fateful hour. May God inspire its delibera- 
tions with courage and wisdom. It will speak at any rate with an Irish accent 
which Hugh O'Neill will recognize as his own, and of which he and the other 
great fathers of Irish history will not be ashamed. You will salute with honor 
the brave Irishmen who at this moment are in English dungeons for no other 
crime than that they have dared to say that Ireland is a nation and entitled to 
a nation's right of freedom. 

Let the world note the fact that what the President of the United States de- 
mands as a fundamental right for all the nationalities of the world, large or 
little, it is a crime to ask for Ireland. How Eamonn De Valera and the other 
heroes may be faring in English prisons we are not allowed to know. 

We have learned something of the brutalities perpetrated on Irish prisoners 
in Belfast jail. Nothing more disgusting than that repulsive treatment is to be 
found in the most savage records of oppression. Just now, I understand, there 
are 100 of these fine young boys sick of influenza in that compound of tyranny. 

We know how fatal that plague is and what careful nursing it requires. But 
these stricken men, we are told, are left without nurses, without invalid diet, 
locked in their cells without a soul to visit them from 5 o'clock in the evening 
until the warder comes in the morning. And they who do this complain of the 
treatment of prisoners in other countries ; and they will, perhaps, when death 
has claimed its victims, appoint a commission to inquire into the case, with 
another Judge Dodd to carry out the inquiry. 



144 THE IRISH QUESTION. 

STATEMENT OF HON. P. D. NORTON, REPRESENTATIVE IN 
CONGRESS FROM NORTH DAKOTA. 

Mr. Norton. Mr. Chairman, as there are many who have come a 
great distance to appear before the committee, and as the time of 
this hearing is limited, I shall not occupy any time of the committee 
now other than to request leave to have printed in the hearings an 
argument in favor of the resolution by Hon. Michael H. Brennan, 
of Devils Lake, N. Dak., a distinguished citizen and lawyer of North 
Dakota, a native of Pennsylvania, and a man who is proud of his 
Irish ancestry. Both of Mr. Brennan's sons, James and Gerald, are 
with the colors, wearing the khaki, and daily doing their part to up- 
hold American principles and American ideals in the war. Mr. Bren- 
nan's views are briefly set forth in the following statement : 

To the honorable Committee on Foreign Affairs, 

House of Representatives, Washington, D. C. 

Sirs : In regard to the resolution before you in relation to Ireland, I beg leave 
to submit the following : 

The alleged position of the allies is to protect the smaller nations and secure 
them in the exercise of their national rights. The position commits Great 
Britain to a proper recognition of the rights of the Irish nation. It is too long 
a tale to relate the history of the relations between Great Britain and Ireland 
since the year 1172, except to call attention to the fact that the struggle has 
lasted ever since without any failure on the part of Ireland to assert her right 
to a separate national existence ; but coming down to the affairs of 1782, when 
the parliament at Dublin, under the leadership of Grattan, declared for Irish 
independence, subject only to the king, lords, and commons of Ireland. At that 
time the Blackstonian doctrine had so saturated the British Empire that all 
legislation in any part of the British dominions was subject to the action of the 
London Parliament. In Ireland it had reached the point where bills would 
have to be submitted to the royal consideration before being introduced, so that 
the function of legislation (so called) was merely to register the will of the 
sovereign. 

The doctrine of Blackstone, to which I refer, will be readily found in his 
commentaries, Book I (pp. 99 to 104). By that doctrine Blackstone had tried 
to seal the slavery of the Irish people. The doctrine was formulated in the 6th 
of George I declaring and establishing the supremacy of England and the eternal 
dependency of Ireland on the British Parliament. In short, the underlying 
principle is the dominance of England as against any other part of the empire. 
This dominancy is distinct from the power of the United States Congress as 
exercised in the District of Columbia, for here we recognize the equality of all 
the States, except as to such powers as are delegated to the Federal Govern- 
ment by the Constitution, and here we have both branches of the legislature 
composed of elective bodies, while in Great Britain one branch is hereditary 
and necessarily undemocratic. Consequently, looking at the relations of Ire- 
land to such a government, even though the greatest liberality were exercised, 
the condition of the people of Ireland would be one of subserviency. The con- 
dition of the entire mass of the population of the empire is also subservient 
because of the existence of two classes, a plebian and an aristocratic. Under 
such a system it would be impossible for Ireland to enjoy the rights of an Amer- 
ican State. The only solution of the difficulty would be (1) a federation of the 
parts composing the empire, placing England on an equality with each of the 
other countries and establishing a parliament for purely imperial affairs, leav- 
ing to the respective countries legislative powers such as our American States 
enjoy; or (2) making Ireland a State of the American Union; or (3) giving her 
national independence. This last is the dream of the race. But in no case 
would the present shelved home-rule act fill the measure of justice or give satis- 
faction, because, first, it falls far short of colonial legislative powers and of our 
State legislative powers and is always subject to the simple act of Parliament 
and could be repealed at any time if the mood of the dominant nation saw its 
own interest in such repeal. A guarantee by the dominant nation could not be 
more potent than an act of Parliament in the absence of a written constitution. 

The status or condition of dominance and the act of Parliament formally 
establishing the dependency of Ireland was at the time of the declaration of 



THE IEISH QUESTION. 145 

Irish independence, in 1782, at the acme of the American crisis, relinquished and 
repealed by Chapter LIII, entitled "An act to repeal an act made in the sixth 
of George of the reign of the late Majesty George I, and entitled 'An act for 
the better securing the dependency of Ireland upon the Crown of Great Britain.' " 
By that act of repeal the doctrine of Blackstone was abolished, and Ireland for 
a short period stood forth practically free and independent among the nations 
till the close of the American war, and the return of Lord Cornwallis and his 
forces to Ireland to carry out the machinations of Pitt, by which the insurrec- 
tion of 179S was fomented and finally the nefarious act of union of 1800 was 
passed by the British Parliament, and the bright dream of independence 
vanished. Bearing in mind those matters, it will be apparent that no parlia- 
mentary guaranties and no treaty obligations will avail Ireland under the pres- 
ent unwritten constitution of the Empire, if the interest of the dominant nation 
or of the London merchants deem Ireland of secondary importance. 

It is unnecessary to reply to what is sometimes said about representation in 
the British Parliament. In the face of so large a representation from Great 
Britain her 105 members might just as well be much less than that 
number. The number of representatives may have been reasonably propor- 
tionate in 1800, but by a system of rule which it is unnecessary to discuss, the 
population of England has steadily and enormously increased since then, while 
the population of Ireland has at least since 1848 steadily decreased, notwith- 
standing the natural resources of the country and the well-known prolific quali- 
ties of the race. 

In the discussion of the proposition for Irish autonomy the Ulster question 
will naturally be considered, and in reference to that I submit a few facts. In 
1607 James I of England confiscated six counties of Ulster, drove the Irish in- 
habitants therefrom, and parceled out the lands to Scotch and English colonists 
known in the records of the transaction by the ominous title of " Undertakers." 
This flagitious piece of land piracy and robbery and extermination is known in 
history as the plantation of Ulster. The lands were distributed as follows : To 
the Protestant archbishop of Armagh, 43,000 acres ; to Trinity College, Dublin, 
a Protestant university, from which a Catholic could not be granted a diploma 
till after 1829, 30,000 acres; to the Skinners (another ominous name) the Dry- 
salters, and Cordwainers corporation and trades of London, 208,000 acres ; and 
to the Scotch Presbyterian and English Protestant all the rest in parcels of 
1,000, 1,500, and 2,000 acres, and the recipient undertakers were obliged to 
swear that " they would not employ an Irish Catholic " or " let them come near 
them." A slight reflection will readily suggest that an act of confiscation may 
be merely on paper, but the practical working out of the act may mean a war 
of extermination. It is unnecessary to say that the Irish struck back. Of 
course, there were confiscations in 1172. 1607, 1635, and 1688-1690. The com- 
mission appointed to report on the confiscations of 1688-1690 reported an aggre- 
gate confiscation of over a million and sixty thousand acres. A sample of the 
variety of causes for such is one where William of Orange bestowed 95,000 
acres of Irish land on the Countess of Orkney, a lady who had inspired him, 
much to the embarrassment of the public and the unhappiness of his lawful 
wife at The Hague. 

It will be readily seen that with Government backing and with fixity of 
tenure of lands in Ulster, and in many cases title in fee simple, while the people 
in other parts of Ireland were holding under tenancies at will, the development 
in Ulster would, when compared to that of the rest of Ireland, appear much to 
the advantage of the people of Ulster, especially those specially favored and 
protected, but the reason is obvious. 

It is claimed that if Ireland had home rule to include all Ireland, the 
Catholics of the south would legislate adversely to the Protestants of the north, 
and that Ulster for that reason should be left out of the measure; but in such 
a case the Catholics of the north would be at a great disadvantage as against 
the other denominations if the objection raised is in this age deserving of 
consideration. An analysis of the situation on the basis of population will 
readily show that the objection that Ulster does not want home rule is by 
no means sustained by the figures, when we bear in mind that the agitation 
is not confined merely to Catholics, and that Ulster sends a majority for home 
rule to Parliament. Let us see: The following table of population was 
published recently in the Literary Digest, I believe, and is still of value for 
purposes of comparison. It will be remembered that the chief grounds of 
the Carsonite opposition to national autonomy, as given by that English 

H. Doc. 1832, 65-3 10 



146 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 



garrison in Ireland is that the alleged fear that as the remainder of Ireland 
is largely Catholic, the Protestants of Ulster would be at a disadvantage, 
and even at the mercy of Catholics, notwithstanding the imperial guaranties, 
but they are willing to divide the country, let the remainder of Ireland have 
autonomy, and let Ulster have a separate government. Whether they would 
still have control of Ulster may be judged by the table of population and the 
proportion of the respective religious divisions. There are nine counties in 
Ulster, and the proportion of Catholics to Protestants in the whole of Ulster 
is as 7 to 9. 



Name of county. 


Total 
population. 


Percentage 
ofCatholics. 


Catholic 
population; 




193,864 
386,947 
120,291 
94,849 
40,781 
204,303 
91, 173 
168,537 
61,836 
71,455 
142,665 


20.5 
24.1 
45.3 
45.8 


48,466 




92, 867 




54, 491 




45, 720 








31.6 

81.5 
78.9 
56.2 
74.7 
55.4 


64,559 




74,305 




132,976 




34,757 




53,376 




79,036 








1,535,920 
680,553 




680,553 
















855,367 













As the proportion of Catholics to Protestants in the county of Londonderry 
is 45.8 to 54.2, we may assume that a like proportion prevails in the city of 
Londonderry, and in that case the 40,780 give above would be divided : Catholics, 
18,677; Protestants, 22,103. But suppose we make it two Protestants to one 
Catholic, we then have Catholics, 13,593; Protestants, 27,187. Adding these to 
the totals already given, we have for the entire Province : Protestant, 882,554 ; 
Catholic, 694,146, in the proportion of 9 to 7, as before stated. 

If we deduct the Protestant population of Belfast Borough (386,947) from 
the total number of Protestants in Ulster (882,554), we get 495,607 for the 
remainder of the Province of Ulster. In other words, Ulster, outside of Belfast 
Borough, has a majority of 198,539 Catholics— 694,146 Catholics minus 495,607 
Protestants. 

If the question were submitted to a vote by counties, it is evident that if 
religious preferences decided, the counties of Cavan, Donegal, Monaghan, Ferma- 
nagh, and Tyrone would vote for home rule, and it is very likely that the 
counties of Armagh and Londonderry would do likewise, each being over 45 
per cent Catholic. The Protestants of Antrim, Belfast Borough, and Down 
would possibly be against home rule for all Ireland, and in that case the 
Catholics of these last-named counties would be subject to the disadvantages 
from their separated brethren that the latter pretend to fear from Catholics. 
At fhis stage of the world's history and development, the position of the fol- 
lowers of Edward Carson is untenable, since it could not be logically held; but, 
nevertheless, literary pabulum of that kind is continuously doled out for the 
use of people of that kind of mentality. 

So much for figures. It will be recalled that during Parnell's time Justin 
McCarthy carried Londonderry by a small majority, and that a Mr. Devlin, a 
home ruler, is member for a division of Belfast. So that in case of a vote of all 
Ulster on the question, there is a big fighting chance to win for self-determina- 
tion. But there is no question of a majority of the counties voting for it. 

I have not referred to the services that the Irish race, both as native and 
adopted citizens of this Republic, have rendered the Stars and Stripes, or to the 
civic gains the Republic has made through them. I have not referred to Ire- 
land's history, aside from the few political turning points cited, nor to the 
increase of wealth — mental, moral, and physical — that history must credit to 
Ireland. Americans should know of these matters. But, regardless of them, 
and in the light of the new freedom proclaimed by our distinguished President, 
I claim that the American Congress should place itself on record as favoring the 
placing of Ireland among the nations of the earth, so that she may be inspired 
to develop, expand, and prosper to the full measure of her talents and resources. 
I was born within the triangle whose vertices rest in Wyoming, Valley Forge, 
and Gettysburg, and my whole heart beseeches my fellow countrymen in the 



THE IRISH QUESTION". 147 

flame of that trinity of national shrines to place themselves on record as de- 
manding for Ireland what Ireland has given her best blood to preserve for 
the United States — the right of self-government. 

Very respectfully, M. H. Brennan. 

ADDITIONAL STATEMENT OF HON. THOMAS GALLAGHER, A 
REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM ILLINOIS. 

Mr. Gallagher. Mr. Chairman, in closing the hearings that your 
committee so generously and unanimously granted upon resolution 
357, introduced by me, I feel that the many delegates present, as well 
as myself, are greatly indebted to your committee for their sympathy 
and kindness. 

It was not my intention to take up any of the time of the com- 
mittee this morning with my remarks, but a question has been asked 
by several members of the committee as to what form of government 
they will have in Ireland if self-determination is granted, and 
whether the Sinn Fein or Irish Republic Party in Ireland believe 
in personal and religious freedom. I am going to ask permission 
of the committee for a few minutes to answer that question and to 
read for the benefit of the committee excerpts from the proclamation 
of the provisional government of the Irish republic as published to 
the world by them on April 23, 1916, on the occasion of Ireland's most 
recent uprising to assert her natural rights. 

PROCLAMATION OF IRISH REPUHLIC. 

We declare the right of the people of Ireland to the ownership of Ireland 
and to the unfettered control of Irish destinies, to be sovereign and indefeasible. 
The long usurpation of that right by a foreign people and government has not 
extinguished the right, nor can it ever be extinguished except by the destruction 
of the Irish people. In every generation the Irish people have asserted their 
right to national freedom and sovereignty ; six times during the past three 
hundred years they have asserted it in arms. Standing on that fundamental 
right and again asserting it in arms in the face of the world, we hereby proclaim 
the Irish republic as a sovereign independent State, and we pledge our lives and 
the lives of our comrades in arms to the cause of its freedom, of its welfare, and 
of its exaltation among the nations. 

The Irish republic is entitled to, and hereby claims, the allegiance of every 
Irishman and Irishwoman. The republic guarantees religious and civil liberty, 
equal rights, and equal opportunities to all its citizens, and declares its resolve 
to pursue the happiness and prosperity of the whole nation and of all its parts, 
cherishing all the children of the nation equally, and oblivious of the differences 
carefully fostered by an alien government, which have divided a minority from 
the majority in the past. 

Until our arms have brought the opportune moment for the establishment of a 
permanent national government, representative of the whole people of Ireland 
and elected by the suffrages of all her men and women, the provisional govern- 
ment, hereby constituted, will administer the civil and military affairs of the 
republic in trust for the people. 

We place the cause of the Irish republic under the protection of the Most High 
God, whose blessing we invoke upon our arms, and we pray that no one who 
serves that cause will dishonor it by cowardice, inhumanity, or rapine. In this 
supreme hour the Irish nation must, by its valor and discipline and by the readi- 
ness of its children to sacrifice themselves for the common good, prove itself 
worthy of the august destiny to which it is called. 
Signed on behalf of the provisional government. 

Thomas J. Clarke. 

Sean MacDiarmada. 

P. H. Pearse. 

James Connolly. 

Thomas MacDonagh. 

Eamonn Ceannt. 

Joseph Plunkett. 



148 THE IEISH QUESTION. 

Mr. Chairman, these are the same principles that gave birth to this 
Republic. They are the principles that have immortalized Thomas 
Jefferson, and that were signed so boldly by John Hancock. They are 
the principles for which Washington fought and Lincoln died, " that 
a Government of the people, by the people, and for the people shall not 
perish from the earth." [Applause.] They are the principles that 
President Wilson will contend for in the peace conference at Ver- 
sailles, so that " governments shall derive their just powers from the 
consent of the governed." They are the self-same principles for 
which we so willingly sent 2,000,000 of our best men across 3,000 miles 
of ocean, a new world Army, that turned defeat into victory upon the 
battle fields of France. They are the principles that prompted us to 
give up our money and float billions in liberty bonds " to make the 
world safe for democracy." These are living principles that will 
never die, and as long as oppression and tyranny exist and liberty yet 
has friends and lovers, the struggle for Irish independence will never 
cease, not until Ireland stands before the world a nation once again. 
[Applause.] 

I wish again to thank the committee for their kind consideration 
and for the extension of time they have so kindly granted the many 
delegations present. 

The Chairman. A motion is made and seconded that 5,000 copies 
of these hearings be printed. All in favor of this motion will make 
it known by "Aye." 

The motion was unanimously carried. 



Appendix. 



Telegrams, letters, and petitions favorable to the resolution have been re- 
ceived by Hon. Jeanette Rankin, Member of Congress from Montana, from the 
following associations, societies, and public men : 

Citizens of Santa Clara County, Cal. 

Bishop of Great Falls, Mont., for the Friends of Irish Freedom. 

Daniel Tracey, chairman Democratic central committee, Great Falls, Mont. 

O. S. Warden, manager Great Falls Tribune (Montana). 

E. H. Cooney, editor Great Falls Leader and chairman council of defense of 
Montana. 

State Senator Burlingame, Montana. 

United Irish Societies of San Francisco, Cal. 

Lady Hibernians, Division No. 1, San Francisco, Cal. 

Friends of Irish Freedom Society, Oakland, Cal. 

County board, Ladies' Auxiliary, A. O. H., San Francisco. 

Robert Emmet Association, San Francisco, Cal. 

Irish societies, Los Angeles, Cal. 

Women's Irish League, San Francisco, Cal. 

Cork Society, San Francisco, Cal. 

Knights of the Red Branch, San Francisco, Cal. 

Indian Nationalist Party, San Francisco, Cal. 

United Order of Hibernians, Los Angeles, Cal. 

Young Ladies' Institute, of 8,000 women, San Francisco, Cal.- 

Ladies' Auxiliary, A. O. H., Los Angeles, Cal. 

Cork societies of the Pacific coast. 

Sixty-two Irish societies in convention at San Francisco, Cal. 

The O'Rahilly Branch, Friends of Irish Freedom, Seattle, Wash. 

Women Friends of Irish Freedom, Des Moines, Iowa. 

Friends of Irish Freedom, Indianapolis, Ind. 

Women Friends of Ireland, La Porte, Ind. 

Munster Men's Association, San Francisco, Cal. 



THE IKISH QUESTION. 149 

Gaelic Athletic Association of California. 

United Irish Societies, Chicago, 111. 

Irish Societies of Butte, Mont. 

Ancient Order of Hibernians, Great Falls, Mont 

Deer Lodge County A. O. H., Montana. 

Phil Sheridan Club of Anaconda, Mont. 

Emmet Literary Association, Butte, Mont. 

Miles City Trades and Labor Council, Montana. 

Women Friends of Irish Freedom, Petersburg, Nebr. 

Emmet Monument Association, Omaha, Nebr. 

St. Enda's Literary Society, Camden, N. J. 

Women Friends of Irish Freedom, Portland, Oreg. 

Ladies' Auxiliary, A. O. H., Seattle, Wash. 

Besides many letters and telegrams from individuals. 

Telegrams, letters, and petitions favorable to the resolution have been re- 
ceived by the Committee on Foreign Affairs from the following associations, 
societies, and public men : 

Irish Societies of Houston, Tex. 

Irish citizens of Norfolk and Portsmouth, Va. 

Meeting of citizens, December 8, 1918, Woonsocket, R. I. 

Fraternal Order of Eagles, Woonsocket, R. I. 

Division No. 6, A. O. H., Providence, R. I. 

Holy Name Society, Woonsocket, R. I. 

United Irish Societies of Pawtucket and Blackstone Valley, R. I. 

Citizens of Providence, R. I. 

Ladies' Auxiliary, A. O. H., of Rhode Island. 

Ancient Order of Hibernians of Maryland. 

Ladies' Auxiliary, A. O. H, Chicago, 111. 

Citizens of Philadelphia, Pa. 

Friends of Ireland, Pittsburgh, Pa. 

Municipal officials of the city of Pittston, Pa. 

Irish societies, Dubois, Pa. 

Company B, Irish Volunteers, Philadelphia, Pa. 

Twenty-two branches of Irish Nationalists, Philadelphia, Pa. 

Gaelic League, Philadelphia, Pa. 

Citizens of Syracuse, N. Y. 

D. H. Comber Club, Philadelphia, Pa. 

A. O. H. divisions, Philadelphia, Pa. 

Irish societies, Cincinnati, Ohio. 

A. O. H. and Ladies' Auxiliary, Cleveland, Ohio. 

Citizens of Mineral County, Mont 

Citizens of Deer Lodge, Mont. 

Citizens of Glasgow, Mont. 

Citizens of Lewistown, Mont. 

Citizens of Butte, Mont., including lieutenant governor, mayor, judge of dis- 
trict court, sheriff, district judge, and various other officials and clergymen, 
presidents of banks, high-school professors, chairman board of county commis- 
sioners, editors, and State president of metal trades. 

Anaconda Mill and Smelter Union, Mont. 

Ex-Gov. Edward F. Dunne, Chicago, 111. 

Mayor William Hale Thompson, Chicago, I1L 

Bishop E. J. O'Dea, of Seattle, Wash., and rectors of Seattle diocese. 

United American Irish Societies, Tacoma, Wash. 

Central Labor Council, Tacoma, Wash. 

Citizens of Seattle, Wash. 

United American Irish Societies, Spokane, Wash. 

Irish Societies, Seattle, Wash. 

Citizens of Fond du Lac, Wis. 

American citizens of Houston, Tex. 

Division No. 72, A. O. H., Boston, Mass. 

United Irish Societies of Lowell, Mass. 

Hibernians of Leominster, Mass. 

A. O. H., Pittsfield, Mass. 

Thomas J. Clark Branch, Friends of Freedom, Westfield, Mass. 

Division No. 17, A. O. H., Atlantic, Mass. 

Friends of Irish Freedom, Westfield, Mass. 



150 THE IRISH QUESTION". 

Massachusetts Council, Friends of Irish Freedom. 
Thomas Ashe Branch, Friends of Irish Freedom, Holyoke, Mass. 
Padraic Pearse Branch, Friends of Irish Freedom, Springfield, Mass. 
Citizens of Palatka, Fla. 
Citizens of St. Augustine, Fla. 
Citizens of Miami, Fla. 
Citizens of Tampa, Fla. 
Citizens of Jacksonville, Fla. 
Citizens of Orlando, Fla. 
Citizens of San Antonio, Fla. 

Building Trades Council, Santa Clara County, Cal. 
Company A, Irish Volunteers, San Francisco, Cal. 
Citizens of Oakland, Cal. 
Wolfe-Tone Society, San Francisco, Cal. 
Cork Benevolent Association, San Francisco, Cal. 
United American Irish Societies, Alameda County, Cal. 
Citizens of Los Angeles, Cal. 

Board of Supervisors of the City and County of San Francisco. 
Golden Gate Aerie, Fraternal order of Eagles, San Francisco. 
Gaelic League Societies of California. 
Knights of Columbus branches, San Francisco, Cal. 
Hibernian Dramatic Club, San Francisco. 
Connaught Soeial Benevolent Association, San Francisco, Cal. 
John McBride Association, San Francisco, Cal. 
Spanish War Veterans, A. O. H., San Francisco, Cal. 
Labor organizations, San Jose, Cal. 

Ulster Celtic Benevolent Association, San Francisco, Cal. 
Citizens of Troy, N. Y. ; mass meeting at Music Hall. 
Davitt Club, Hartford, Conn. 

Connecticut State Convention of Friends of Irish Freedom. 
American citizens of Irish birth, Auditorium Theater, Baltimore, Md. 
Hon. John W. Goff, justice of New York Supreme Court. 
Cumann na m Ban, New York. 
Friends of Irish Freedom, Brighton, Mass. 
Brotherhood of Railway Clerks, Pittsburgh, Pa. 
County Galway Men's Association, Boston, Mass. 
Citizens of Jamaica, Long Island, N. Y. 

President, faculty, and students, of the University of Notre Dame, Notre 
Dame, Ind. 
American citizens of Jacksonville, Fla. 
Metal Trades Council, Seattle, Wash. 
United Irish Society, Chicago, 111. 
Boston Common mass meeting, Boston, Mass. 
Skenandoah Club, New York. N. Y. 
Women citizens, New York, N. Y. 
Irish County clubs, New York City. 

Carmelite branch of Friends of Irish Freedom, New York City. 
Irish Societies of Brooklyn, N. Y. 
Gaelic League, New York State. 
Gaelic Athletic Association, New York City. 
Friends of Ireland Association, New York City. 
Women Friends of Ireland, New York City. 
Irish Progressive League, New York City. 
County Louth Association, New York City. 
Ancient Order of Hibernians, Buffalo, N. Y. 
Friends of Ireland, Rochester, N. Y. 
Madison Square Garden meeting, New York City. 
Philadelphia Academy of Music petition. 
Citizens of Wilmington, Del. 

United Irish American Societies of Brooklyn, N. Y. 
Emmet Association, New York City. 
Committee of 1,000 women, New York City. 

George Washington Branch of Friends of Irish Freedom, Brooklyn, N. Y. 
The 1776 Club, New York City. 
Irish Women's Council, New York City. 
Thomas McDonough Branch of Irish Freedom, New York City. 



THE IRISH QUESTION. 151 

Charles Stewart Parnell Club, New York City. 

Citizens of New Brighton, N. Y. 

Women citizens of Harlem, New York City. 

United Irish Societies of New York City. 

Celtic Council, Royal Arcanum, New York City. 

Citizens' mass meeting of Seattle, Wash. 

President and faculty of Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pa. 

Ancient Order of Hibernians of Minnesota. 

Irish History Club, Minneapolis, Minn. 

Citizens of Denver, Colo. 

Division No. 1, A. O. H., Danbury, Conn. 

Untied Irish Societies of Torrington, Conn. 

Irish Societies of New Britain, Conn. 

Ancient Order of Hibernians of New Haven, Conn. 

Worcester, Mass., citizens' mass meeting for the freedom of Ireland. 

Telegram from John J. O'Connor, Kansas City, Mo., State president Ancient 
Order of Hibernians. 

Citizens of Sharon, Pa., and vicinity. 

People of La Salle and Peru, 111. 

Citizens of Indianapolis, Ind. 

Division No. 72, Ancient Order of Hibernians, Boston, Mass. 

Ancient Order of Hibernians, Division No. 1, of Manchester, N. H. 

The County Galway Men's Benevolent Association of Greater Boston. 

Allied Irish-American societies and Friends, Pittsburgh, Pa. 

Citizens of New York City, at a mass meeting held at Corpus Christi Hall. 

President and faculty of Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pa. 

Public meeting held under auspices of the united Irish societies of Woon- 
socket. 

State convention of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, at Lewiston, Me. 

Ancient Order of Hibernians, J. H. Nightingale, J. J. Fitzgerald, and Martin 
Crahen, committee. 

Telegram from Leo J. McCarthy and M. M. Roach, representing Knights of 
Columbus of Oakland, Cal. 

Telegram from the united Irish-American societies of Alameda Couuty, Cal. 

Besides many letters and telegrams from individuals. 

Letters opposing the resolution have been received by the Committee on 
Foreign Affairs as follows: 

Ulster Society of Pittsburgh, Pa. 

Philadelphia Protestant Federation. 



INDEX. 



A. 

Page. 

Act of renunciation, 1783, England yielding all claims to rule Ireland 67, 142 

Act of union, corrupt passage and results 28, 61, 65, 101, 112, 138, 141-142 

Act of union, attitude of Catholic Irish toward 65-66 

Ahern, Thomas J., petition of 136 

Alleged German plot in Ireland, 1918 111 

America, the world's arbiter : 9, 16, 73 

American aspect of the Irish issue 106 

American Congress to Irish parliament 107 

American relations in future to England 85 

American intervention in European affairs 47, 51, 52, 66, 72, 73 

American labor supports Ireland's demands.- 24, 30, 46, 48, 49, 79, 94, 98, 128, 134 

"American Loyalists" and "Ulster Loyalists" 116 

American petitions supporting Ireland's claims 148-151 

Anticonscription, Ireland 60, 70-72, 109, 112 

Anti-Irish propaganda 66, 74, 109 

Appendix 148-151 

Telegrams, letters, petitions, and resolutions in regard to Irish question. 
Arrest of Irish leaders and election directors without trial 88, 90, 143 

B. 

Barrett, Hon. George F., statement of 19 

Blake, Hon. Edward, on overtaxing Ireland 45 

Boston resolutions 134 

Brennan, Hon. Michael H., letter from 144 

British Army, Irishmen in 42, 69, 71, 124, 125 

Brutal treatment of Irish Republicans, 1918 143 



Caldwell, Hon. Charles Pope, statement of 99 

Can Ireland exist unaided 139, 142 

Cary, Hon. William J., statement of 82 

Carson's rebellion, 1914, engineered from London 117-118 

Catholics, attitude to act of union 61, 65-66 

Catholics in American Revolutionary Army 64-65, 130 

Central Labor Unions, resolutions of 46-47 

Christie, Mrs. Adelia, statement of 29 

Chamberlain, Arthur, on Irish industries 75 

Childer's Commission, report of 44-45, 141 

Clancy, J. M., statement of 29 

Coercion acts, 100, imposed on Ireland 112, 115 

Cohalan, Justice Daniel F., letter from 80 

Colum, Padraic, statements of 43, 90 

Confederation of Kilkenny and Religious Freedom 67, 138 

Confiscations in Ireland 145 

Congress of Vienna 81, 121 

Congress made war and can instruct envoys 83, 128 

Congressmen's message to Lloyd George 20-21, 102 

Constitution of Irish Republic 89 

Coyne, Thomas, statement of 49 

153 



154 INDEX. 

Page. 

Cronin, Patrick, Pittsburgh resolutions 82 

Curley, Hon. John J., statement of 134 

D. 

Dalton, Richard P., statements of 14, 55 

Delaney, Hon. John J., remarks of 100 

Depopulation of Ireland 12,17,47,70 

De Valera, Eamon, president of provisional government 125, 143 

Dever, Hon. William E., letter from 98 

Disfranchised Catholics 65 

Dolan, Charles J., statement of 27,46 

Donohoe, Hon. Michael F., statement of 104 

Donovan, Hon. J. F., statement of 53 

Doyle, T. J., statement of 133 

Dungannon Convention, Irish volunteers 117, 130 

Dunn, Prof. Joseph, statement of 129 

Dunne, Hon. E. F., letter from 97 

Dwyer, Richard 54 

E. 

Economic situation in Ireland 139 

Eagan, Hon. John J., statement of 50 

Election conditions in Ireland 89-90 

England's failure in Ireland 47, 101 

England's record of infamy 142 

" English Aspect of the Irish Issue " 109-112 

English Labor Party 43, 73, 132 

English pledges no guaranty for Ireland 145 

Exchequers of Ireland and England amalgamated 141 



Fay, Thomas P., statement of 26 

Fenlon, Rev. John F., statement of 82 

Fitzgerald, James J 54 

Fitzgerald, Patrick F., Pittsburgh resolutions 82 

Flag of Ireland 67 

Fleets of England and Ireland 12 

Flood, Henry, as Irish statesman 33, 40, 67 

For telegrams, letters, petitions, and resolutions in regard to this ques- 
tion, see Appendix, pp. 148-151. 

Fox, George L., statement of 57-58 

Fogarty, Rev. Dr., letter of 143 

Freedom of small nations 7, 15, 27, 36, 50, 91-93 

G. 

Gallagher, Hon. Thomas, statements of 3, 147 

Gallivan, Hon. James A., remarks of 20, 102 

Gavegan, Hon. Edward J., letter from 137 

German Army, Irishmen in 60 

German conspiracy in Ireland, alleged 111 

German rifles in Ulster 111-118 

Germany-Belgium : England-Ireland 111 

Goff, Hon. John W., resolutions of 18-19 

Gorman, Hon. George, statement of 10 

Grace, Hon. John P., telegram from ,. 137 

Graham, John, statement of 81 

Grattan's Irish Parliament : 40, 67, 101 

Griffith, Arthur 68, 77 

H. 

Hallinan, Rev. Dr., letter of 142 

Hamill, Hon. James A., statement of 25 

Hearn, John J., statement of 77 



INDEX. 155 

Page. 

"Hidden Phase of American History" (O'Brien) 130 

Hodgson, Hon. L. G., letter from 30 

Howard, Rev. Timothy, statement of 31 

Hughes, Katherine, statement of 64 

Hurton, Rev. T. J., statement of 105 

I. 

Industries of Ireland and their destruction 41, 43, 74, 140, 141 

Industries of Ireland and Arthur Chamberlain's views 75-76 

Industries of Ireland, various handicaps upon 41, 74-77, 138, 140-141 

Industries of Ireland, present handicaps imposed 41 

Indemnity to Ireland : 142 

Interdependence of States 44 

" International Aspects of Irish Issue " 121-126 

Ireland, a nation 7, 36, 47, 84, 114, 142, 147 

Ireland, an international problem 56, 85, 87, 121-126 

Ireland, attitude of, in great war 69 

Ireland gave over 64 per cent population to army 69 

Ireland, case of, for the peace conference 74 

Ireland, case of, if located in central Europe 52 

Ireland, crimeless as described by Maxwell 40 

Ireland, dauntless persistence of struggle 115 

Ireland, invasions of 28, 56 

Ireland, five armed rebellions in last 125 years 66, 113 

Ireland, " Key of the Atlantic " 123 

Ireland, national demand of 85-86, 144 

Ireland, partition of 68, 84 

Ireland, other small nations compared 8, 15, 46, 91, 100, 120-122 

Ireland, population of 12, 17, 68, 139 

Ireland, depopulation of 12, 17, 47, 70 

Ireland, prosperity of, under Irish Parliament 40, 101 

Ireland, religious freedom guaranteed in 43^4, 67, S9, 146 

Ireland, revenue of 139 

Ireland, taxation of 141 

Ireland, overtaxation of 28, 44-46, 122, 141 

Ireland, taxation increased during war 46 

Ireland, resources of 141 

Ireland, summary of history! 28 

Ireland, test of sincerity of allied war aims 126 

Ireland, value.of, in league of nations 122 

"Ireland's Plea for Freedom" (Maloney) 106-126 

" Irish Aspect of Irish Issue " 112-116 

Irish convention framed in London, 1917 110 

Irish leaders in prison 88-90, 110, 143 

Irish Parliament, 1782-1800 40, 61, 67, 101, 113 

Irish rebellions 18, 66, 111 

Irish republic, constitution of 89 

Irish republic, financial outlook of 122, 139 

Irish republic, flag of 67 

Irish republic, proclamation of 147 

Irish-American mothers of soldiers 34 

Irishmen in American Revolution 31, 33, 38, 65, 107-108 

Irishmen in recent world war 25, 42, 69, 105, 124-125 

Irishwomen and conscription 72 

Irishwomen, votes of 88 

J. 
Jolly, Mrs. Ellen Ryan, statement of „ 32 

K. 

Kelly, Dr. John F 54 

Kennedy, Hon. Ambrose, statement of 5 

Kirwin, Rev. William J., statement of 104 



156 INDEX. 



Pagt>. 

Labor in America supports Ireland's claims 23, 

30, 46, 48-49, 79, 94, 98, 128, 132, 134 

Labor in Britain favors self-determination 73 

Labor Party of Ireland 47 

Leahy, John P., statement of 128 

Lennox, Prof. P. J., statement of 139 

Lloyd-George convention 110 

Lonergan, Hon. Augustine, statement of 128 

Lynch, Diarmuid, statement of 87 

Lyons, Bernard, statement of 134 

M. 

McNeill, Prof. Eoin 43, 125 

McCabe, Rev. F. X., statement of 9 

McCartan, Dr. Patrick, statement of 86 

McDonough, Stephen J., statement of 30 

McKenna, Peter J., letter of 136 

McLaughlin, Hon. Joseph, statements of 13, 35 

McNamara, Thos. J., statement of 94 

McWhorter, Mrs. Mary, statement of 33 

Maloney, Dr. William J. M. A., pamphlet 106-126 

Mansion House address to President Wilson 109 

Men of military age in Ireland 71 

Message from congressmen to Lloyd George 20, 21, 102 

Militarism in Ireland 28-29, 47, 88 

Minority in Ireland, safeguards for 43-44, 89, 146 

Montague, Hugh, statement of 133 

Morrissey, James J 54 

Moran, P. T., statement of 101 

Mothers' mission to Washington 3, 34 

Murphy, John A., statement of 39 

N. 

Navy League of England covets Irish ports 123 

New York American, editorial 132 

New York resolutions , : 14 

Nolan, Hon. John I., letters of 131 

Norton, Hon. P. D., statement of 144 

O. 

O'Connell. Cardinal, address of 14 

O'Connor, John P., statement of 98 

O'Dea, John, statement of 138 

O'Donnell, Rev. Philip J., statement of 22 

O'Donohue, Hon. P. J., statement of 134 

O'Shaunessy, Hon. George F., statement of 101 

O'Sullivan, Humphrey, statement of 78 

O'Hagerty, Patrick, statement of 77 

Overtaxation of Ireland 28, 44-46, 122, 141 



Partition of Ireland 68, 84 

Peace Conference, Ireland's case at 74, 88 

Phelan, Hon. M. F., statement of 51 

Philadelphia resolutions 105 

Plantations of Ireland 145, 67, 72 

Population of Ireland 139, 12, 17, 68 

Population of Ulster 68, 146 

President Wilson quoted 27, 50, 88, 91-93, 135 

President Wilson, 14 points accepted 39 



INDEX. 157 

Page. 

Proclamation of Irish Republic 147 

Pro-Germanism alleged 42, 59, 68, 81, 110, 133 

Propriety of action by Congress 20 

26, 27, 39, 41, 43, 51, 52, 53, 55, 57, 83, 104, 128, 135 
Protestant leaders of Ireland 7, 65, 68, 87, 114 

R. 

Rainey, Hon. John W., statement of 94 

Rankin, Hon. Jeannette, statement of 90 

Reidy, John 54 

Religious census, Ireland 68 

Religious census, Ulster 68, 146 

Religious freedom, guarantees 43, 85, 89, 146 

Religious harmony, feature of New Ireland 64, 68 

Religious toleration in Ireland 7, 19, 22, 86, 114, 120 

Renunciation act, 1782 67, 142 

Revenue of Ireland 2S, 43, 122, 139, 141-142 

Revenue of other small nations 43, 139 

Revolutionary Army, Irishmen in 31, 33, 38, 65, 107-108 

Revolutionary Army, " Loyalists " in 65, 116 

Reynolds, P. J., statement of 133 

Rock, Thomas* statement of 46 

Rogers, Hon. John Jacob, Lowell resolutions 48 

Ryan, Edward, statement of _ 80 

S. 

Scanlan, Hon. Kickham, statement of 6 

See Appendix, 148-151, for telegrams, letters, petitions, and resolutions on 
this question. 

Self-determination in Ireland, procedure 87 

Self-determination an issue in the great war 87 

Self-determination by adult suffrage 5 

Shahan, Rt. Rev. Thomas J., letter from 129 

Sharkey, Rev. Patrick A, statement of 130 

Sheridan, Gen. Phil, willing to lead Fenians 56 

Sinn Fein, an American ideal 84,98 

Sinn Fein, attitude in war-conserving Gaelic race 70 

Sinn Fein, denies authority of British Parliament 87-89. 126 

Sinn Fein flag entered in records 66 

Sinn Fein, meaning of 89, 98, 143 

Sinn Fein platform 126 

Sinn Fein, policy of 69, 70, 84. 88 

Smith, Hon. Charles B., telegram from 104 

Smith, Hon. Thomas B., New York resolutions 18 

Statistics of Irish man power 70-71 

Stone, the late Senator, for Irish independence 66 

T. 

Tague, Hon. Peter F., statement of 99 

Thompson, James, statement of 24 

Tinkham, Hon. George Holden, statement of 130 

U. 

"Ulster, Aspect of the Irish Issue" 116,121 

Ulster, Catholics in, proportion — 7 to 9 146 

Ulster, Catholic majority in province outside Belfast 146 

Ulster, Irish patriots of 7, 28, 114 

Ulster, " Loyalists " of 116 

Ulster not richest province 116 

Ulster one of the six counties under martial law 86 



158 INDEX. 

Fags. 

Ulster, political situation in 67. 86, 117, US. 145 

Ulster, population and religious census 68, 116, 146 

Ulster, Protestant majority of, resident in Belfast 146 

Ulster, rebellion of 1914, engineered from London 117-118 

Ulster, safeguards for minority 43, 44, 89, 146 

Ulster, Orange and Nationalist rebels exchange aid 86 

" Ulster " problems of America, 1776, and of Bohemia, 1918 116. 120 

Unanimity in Ireland 86, 106 

Unconquerable spirit of Ireland 114-115 

Union, act of 28, 61, 65, 101, 112 

United Spanish War Veterans, resolutions of 136 

W. 

Why America should intervene 16-17, 72-73 

Woman suffrage in Ireland 88 

o 



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